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Post by pegasus on Sept 17, 2011 9:58:00 GMT -7
Good afternoon from Tuxy and me :)This is the 261ST day of 2011 with 104 days left in the year. Today in NY's Finger Lakes at 10:31 A.m., it's fair , temp 62.6ºF [Feels like 62ºF], winds S @ 5-6 mph, humidity 51%, pressure 30.03 in and rising, dew point 44ºF, chance of rain 0%. Today - Sunny . High temp 69ºF and winds SE @ 5-10 mph, humidity 62%, 10% chance of rain, Tonight - Clear . Low around 46ºF, winds SE @ 5-10 mph, humidity 77%, chance of rain 0%. Today in History: 1759--the French surrendered Quebec to the English. 1810--Chile declared its independence from Spain. 1850--the US Congress passed the Fugitive Slave Act that allowed slave owners to reclaim slaves who escaped to other and non-slave states. 1851--the first edition of The New York Times was published. 1927--the Columbia Phonograph Broadcasting System (later CBS) debuted with a network of 16 stations. 1947--the National Security Act that unified the Army, Navy and newly formed Air Force into the Department of Defense went into effect. 1999--Sammy Sosa of the Chicago Cubs became the first MLB player to hit 60 home runs in a season twice. 2001--letters postmarked Trenton, NJ and tested positive for anthrax were sent to the NY Post and NBC News anchor Tom Brokaw 2003--Hurricane Isabel plowed into North Carolina's Outer Banks with 100-mph winds and pushed its way up the Eastern Seaboard, claiming 40 lives. 2009--tens of thousands of protesters rallied in defiance of Iran's Islamic leadership, clashing with police and confronting state-run anti-Israel rallies. 2009--the final episode of The Guiding Light aired on CBS after 72 years on radio and TV. World News Capsules: 1. Palestinians see UN bid as their most viable option. ....Nahil Shaath, a senior Palestinian official, said the decision to apply for membership was the most viable of the only options possible. 2. Health officials at risk as India's graft thrives. ....The health infrastructure of Uttar Pradesh, India's most populous state, is abysmal and plagued by corruption and a lack of oversight by the central government. 3. Anti-Qaddafi forces capture, then lose, last redoubts. ....Attacks by former rebels in Bani Walid and Surt often begin with bravado and bluster, and end with a disorderly and sometimes humiliating retreat. 4. Clashes erupt in Yemen, and a sit-in is attacked. ....Fighting broke out between security forces and fighters aligned with opposition tribal leaders, and security troops attacked anti-government protesters at a sit-in. 5. Rupture with Vatican reveals a changed Ireland. ....The awe and fear the Roman Catholic Church once commanded in Ireland have given way to rage and defiance after revelations about the abuse of children. 6. Chavez heads to Cuba saying cancer is history. ....Venezuelan Pres. Hugo Chavez headed back to Cuba for a 4th phase of chemotherapy that he expects to be his last round of treatment for cancer. US News Capsules: 1. Spectators' deaths highlight risks of popular aerial racing. ....In Reno, Nev., the National Transportation Safety Board hopes to determine what caused a vintage plane to crash, killing at least nine people and maiming dozens. 2. A mother's war on germs at fast-food playlands. ....Swab samples collected by Erin M. Carr-Jordan from dozens of restaurant playgrounds have revealed the widespread presence of an array of pathogens. 3. Chicago's mayor challenges teachers union. ....Mayor Rahm Emanuel has encouraged teachers to buck their own by offering bonuses to work longer hours. 4. Cautionary lessons from Michigan. ....In a new book, Jennifer M. Granholm, the ex-governor of a state where the downturn hit first and hardest, argues that laissez-faire and austerity do not work. 5. The end of the missions. ....For some soldiers, returning after their yearlong deployment to Afghanistan was the beginning of new difficulties. Today's Headlines of Interest: None on Sunday. Thought for Today"It's not that I'm afraid to die. I just don't want to be there when it happens." -- Woody Allen, comedian & film producer (b. 1935) Today's flower: Hibiscus syriacus 'Minerva'
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Post by pegasus on Sept 17, 2011 13:58:29 GMT -7
French ban on praying in the streets goes into effect today. A ban on praying in French streets went into effect today, with 1000s of the nation's Muslim faithful being moved to temporary alternative spaces for their daily prayers. From Paris to Marseille, midday prayers will be led from disused barracks or other temporary buildings, after the question of Islam's visibility became a potlitical issue under Pres. Nicolas Sarkozy. For years, Muslims by the hundreds, dodging foot and vehicle traffic, have unfurled rugs on northern Paris sidewalks and put their foreheads to the ground outside two mosques for Friday prayers — for the simple reason that there's not enough space inside. Now Claude Gueant, the interior minister — who's also one of Pres. Sarkozy's top advisers — has devised a stopgap solution: On Friday, a unused former fire station nearby will be outfitted to host two large prayer halls. The move tackles one of France's thorniest social dilemmas in recent years: How to integrate a large and expanding Muslim population that often feels alienated in a proudly secular country with deep Roman Catholic roots. France is home to the biggest Muslim minority in Western Europe. By some estimates, as many as six million French people, or just under 10% of the population, are Muslims, with origins in France's former North African colonies. Far right protests at the "Islamisation" of the Goutte d'Or district began last year and in December the leader of the French National Front, Marine Le Pen, accused Muslim fundamentalists of using prayers for political ends and compared the practice to the Nazi wartime occupation of France. Responding to Mr Gueant's plan, Mohamed Salah Hamza, an imam in the Goutte d'Or, said preparations at the barracks were behind schedule, and he feared a "climate of anarchy". "We are not cattle," he was quoted as saying by France's TF1 News.
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Post by pegasus on Sept 17, 2011 19:34:36 GMT -7
Obama tax plan to demand more of millionaires ....Populist 'Buffett Rule' seeks to ensure rich pay at least same share as middle class. Pres. Obama will call for a new minimum tax rate for individuals making more than $1 million a year to ensure that they pay at least the same percentage of their earnings as middle-income taxpayers. With a special joint Congressional committee starting work to reach a bipartisan budget deal, the proposal adds a new and populist feature to his effort to raise the political pressure on Republicans to agree to higher revenues from the wealthy in return for Democrats' support of future cuts from Medicare and Medicaid. He will call his proposal the “Buffett Rule,” in a reference to Warren E. Buffett, the billionaire investor who has complained repeatedly that the richest Americans generally pay a smaller share of their income in federal taxes than do middle-income workers, because investment gains are taxed at a lower rate than wages. He will not specify a rate or other details, and it is unclear how much revenue his plan would raise, but his idea of a millionaires minimum tax will be prominent in the broad plan for long-term deficit reduction. He is certain to draw Republican opposition who are staunchly opposed raising taxes on the affluent. Of course, they oppose raising taxes on millionaires since most of them are that. Congressional financial statistics show the the overwhelming majority of the House are millionaires and why should we expect them to be willing to tax themselves. Hmmm? And now they have a couple of new millionaires joining their ranks. Good luck Mr. President, but it will be have a snowball's chance in hell to get this rich Republicans to agree to tax themselves at a higher rate. I'm beginning to think that maybe there should be an income restriction on Congressmen/women - no one making over $500,000 need apply.
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Post by pegasus on Sept 18, 2011 7:16:04 GMT -7
Good afternoon from Tuxy and me :)This is the 260th day of 2011 with 105 days left in the year. Today in NY's Finger Lakes at 12:52 p.m., it's fair , temp 53ºF [Feels like 53ºF], winds calm, humidity 69%, pressure 30.45 in and falling, dew point 43ºF, chance of rain 0%. Today - Mostly cloudy . High temp 63ºF and winds E @ 5-10 mph, humidity 65%, 10% chance of rain, Tonight - Partly cloudy . Low around 44ºF, winds light & variable, humidity 78%, chance of rain 10%. Today in History: World News Capsules: US News Capsules: Today's Headlines of Interest: Thought for Today" Today's flower:
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Post by pegasus on Sept 19, 2011 11:12:49 GMT -7
Good morning from Tuxy and me :)This is the 262nd day of 2011 with 103 days left in the year. Today in NY's Finger Lakes at 11:05 a.m., it's fair , temp 59ºF [Feels like 59ºF], winds S @ 7 mph, humidity 67%, pressure 30.23 in and falling, dew point 48ºF. Today - Partly cloudy . Sunny early then increasing cloudiness in afternoon. High temp 70ºF and winds SSE @ 10-20 mph, humidity 65%, 20% chance of rain. Tonight - Showers this evening with possible thrunderstorms developing overnight. Low around 59ºF, winds S @ 15-25 mph, humidity 80%, chance of rain 60%. Today in History: 1796--Pres. George Washington's farewell address was published. 1881--James Garfield, 20th Pres. of the US, died 2 1/2 months after being shot by Charles Guiteau. Cheter Alan Arthur became president. 1957--the US conducted its first underground nuclear test in the Nevada desert. 1970-- The Mary Tyler Moore Show debuted on CBS-TV. 1985--Mexico City was struck by a devastating earthquake that killed at least 9,600. 2001--the parent companies of American Airlines and United Airlines both announced plans to lay of 20,000 employees each. 2006--the chief judge in Saddam Hussein's genocide trial was replaced amid complaints that he was too easy on Hussein. 2010--retired Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen delcared the BP oil well in the Gulf of Mexico was "effectively dead." 2010--on his 4th and final day, Pope Benedict XVI celebrated Mass to beatify Cardinal John Henry Newman, the 19th century Anglican convert. World News Capsules: 1. China and India making inroads in biotech drugs. ....With the UN set to meet on the urgency of diseases, brand-name makers and the Obama administration are fighting potential sales of cheaper medicines to poorer countries. 2. Turkey predicts alliance with Egypt as regional anchors. ....Turkey's foreign minister offered his vision of a new order for the Arab world, where the country's former allies in Syria and Israel fall into deeper isolation. 3. Strauss-Kahn concedes 'error' in sexual encounter with maid. ....In his first interview since his May 14th arrest on charges of attempted rape, Dominique Strauss-Kahn was uncomfortable, intermitently angry and sounded bitter. 4. Greeks discuss drastic moves to receive aid. ....Greek leaders struggled to agree to budget reductions that would satisfy foreign lenders demands even as they tried to stave off mounting resistance to those cuts at home. US News Capsules: 1. Paint Creek, the town Perry left behind. ....The tight-knit and traditionally Democratic community of Paint Creek no longer wholeheartedly embraces Rick Perry, even as it anchors his origin story. 2. Flight data recovered in crash at air race. ....A memory card could reeal important details about conditions in the plane's engine and other flight variables like velocity, altitude andlocation that caused the crash in Reno, Nev. 3. Responding before a call is needed. ....Under a pilot program aimed at heading off 911 calls and trips to the hospital, some paramedics visit chronically ill patients in their homes to chcke their vital signs and medications. 4. Fed runs risk of doing less than investors expect. ....The Federal Reserve is under pressure from investers to act to encourage growth and from Republican presidential candidates and others to refrain from acting. 5. Modern Family takes home five Emmys. ....The Emmy Awards telecast, streamlined to avoid controversy or criticism, ended the same way it did last year, with 'Modern Family' and "Mad Men" being named the best comedy and rama, respectively, on television. Today's Headlines of Interest: Obama plan to cut deficit wil trim spending by $3 trillion. The plan is Pres. Obama's opeing salvo in sweeping negotiations on deficit reduction to be taken up by the joint House-Senate committee over the next two months. Using entitlement cuts, tax increases (the Buffett rule) and war savings to reduce the federal deficit over the next 10 years. It will call for $1.5 trillion in tzx increases, primarily on the wealthy, through a combination of letting the Bush-era tax cuts expire, clsoing loopholes and limiting the amount that high earners can deduct. It also includes $580 billion in adjustments to health and entitlement programs ($248 billion to Medicare and $72 billion to Medicaid). The Medicare cuts would not come from an increase in elegibility age. The plan also counts a savings of $1.1 trillion from the ending combat missions in Iraq and withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan. Furthermore, the president promises to veto any legislation that seeks to cut the deficit through spending cuts alone and does not include revenue increates in the form of tax increaes on the wealthy. The Obama proposal has little chance of becoming law unless Republican lawmakers bend. But by focusing on the wealthiest Americans, the president is sharpening the contrast between Republicans and Democrats with a theme he can carry into his bid for re-election in 2012. As well he should. I am so tired of all those wealthy Republican congressmen declarations on no taxes on the wealthy. Ever hear of what happened to a certain historical figure who said, "Let them eat cake?" Retiree benefits for the military could face cuts. A push in Congress to reduce the debt and the possibility that the Pentagon might have to begin trimming core programs have suddenly made retiree benefits vulnerable. As Washington looks to squeeze savings from Social Security and Medicare, another big social welfare system is growing as rapidaly with far less scrutiny - the health and pension benefits of military retirees that now cost the goverment about $100 billion a year. Making even incremental reductions to military benefits is a doomed venture, given the public's broad support for the troops, the power of veterans groups and the fact that significant savings take years to appear. The intense push in Congress to reduce the debt and so the Pentagon might have to begin trimming core programs like weapons procurement, research, training and construction have suddenly made retiree benefits vulnerable. If Congress fails to adopt the deficit-reduction recommendations this fall, the Defense Department will be required to find about $900 billion in savings over the coming decade. Cuts that deep will almost certainly entail reducing personnel benefits for active and retired troops. Whatever plan might be adopted won't apply to current military personnel. Protesters shot, starting battle in Yemen capital. Firing from rooftops and the back of pickup trucks, security forcs turned heavy-caliber machine guns and other weapons on demonstrators, setting off battles between army defactors and forces loyal to the government in the worst day of violence in the capital since March. It left at least 24 demonstrators dead and more than 200 wounded, threatening to scuttle any hopes for an accord between Pres. Ali Abdullah Saleh and his opponents. It also has raised the prospect of open and more intense sparring among factions of Yemen's divided military, that might lead to civil war. The country has already become a base for Islamist militants linked to al-Qaida. The vacuum of authority has concerned the US and we have struck at the Qaida cells with drone aircraft (run by the CIA). The violence on Sunday began as the antigovernment demonstrators tried to march for the first time in months beyond the part of Sana where they have camped in a sit-in under the protection of Maj. Gen. Ali Mohsin al-Ahmar, leader of the First Armored Division and a staunch opponent of the president. Men in civilian clothes opened fire from rooftops, the protesters said, and government security forces shot at them from a Ministry of Electricity building and, using machine guns, from the backs of pickup trucks. The gunfire lasted about an hour. And so the conflict goes on and who knows where it will end. Probably badly as far as we are concerned. Thought for Today"Do not let yourself be tainted with a barren skepticism." — Louis Pasteur, French scientist (1822-1895). Today's flower: Kalopanax septemlobus or haragiri
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Post by pegasus on Sept 20, 2011 11:18:05 GMT -7
Good afternoon from Tuxy and me :)This is the 263rd day of 2011 with 102 days left in the year. Today in NY's Finger Lakes at 12:02 p.m., it's cloudy , temp 61.7ºF [Feels like 61ºF], winds WNW @ 4 mph, humidity 87%, pressure 30.34 in and rising, dew point 58ºF, chance of rain 40%. Today - Mostly cloudy . with a few showers. High temp 69ºF and winds WSW @ 5-10 mph, humidity 84%, 30% chance of rain Tonight - Partly cloudy . Low around 57ºF, winds light & variable, humidity 92%, chance of rain 30%. Today in History: 1519--Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan set out to find a western passage to the Spice Islands, eventualy circling Earth. 1870--Italian troops took control of the Papal States leading to the unification of Italy. 1894--the National Equal Rights Party was formed by suffragists in San Francisco, nominating Belva Lockwood for president. 1911--the British line RMS Olympic collided with the Royal Navy cruiser HMS Hawke off the Isle of Wight. 1958--Martin Luther King Jr. was seriously wonded during a book signing in New York City by Izola Curry, who was found to be mentally incompetent. 1962--James Meredith was blocked from enrolling in the University of Mississippi by Gov. Ross Barnett, causing Pres. Kennedy to send in the US Army to enforce desegratioin. 1984--a suicide car bomber attacked the US Embassy annex in Beirut, Lebanon, killing a dozen people. 1998--after a record 2,632 games, Cal Ripkin Jr. sat out a game against the NY Yankees. 2001--Pres. Bush announced a new Cabinet-level office to fortify homeland security and named Pennsylvania governor Tom Ridge as its first director. 2005--Simon Wiesenthal, Holocaust survivor and Nazi hunter, died at age 96. 2006--the African Union announced it would extend the mandate of a peacekeeping force in Darfur. World News Capsules: 1. Clashes erupt for 2nd day in Yemeni capital, as troops fight defectors. ....Fierce fighting spilled into a 2nd day as govenment security forces battled soldiers who have joined anti-govenment protesters. 2. Hundreds of civilians flee the struggle over a Qadhafi stronghold. ....Those leaving the costal city of Surt, Col. Muammar al-Qadhafi's birthplace, said there was no water or electricity and little food. 3. US is quietly getting ready for Syria without Assad. ....The Obama administration is trying to avoid a repeat of what happened in Iraq, where the US ws not fully prepared for the aftermath of a leader's fall. 4. Feathers trapped in amber reveal a more colorful Dinosaur Age. ....Paleontologists in Canada have found 70-million-old amber preserving 11 specimens showing a wide diversity of feather types and pigments in the Mesozoic Era. US News Capsules: 1. In small towns, gossip moves to the web, and turns vicious. ....As more people share gossip over the Internet rather tha over coffee and eggs, anonymous, and startingly negative, posts have provoked fights, divorce and worse. 2. Out and proud to serve. ....At 12:01 a.m. last night, 1st Lt. Josh Seefried, who founded an undercover group of 4,000 gay, lesbian, bisexual & transgender (GLBT) active-duty service members, dropped his pseudonym as gays became eligible for the US armed services. 3. Sentence for terrorist is too short, court rules. ....In giving Jose Padilla, a man convicted of terrorism conspiracy charges, a term of 17 years, a judge veered too far from federal guidelines, a higher court said. 4. Worry about a new wave of layoffs. ....America's workers are worried about job security as the economy slips perilously close to a 2nd reciession. 5. Tax paln to turn old buildings 'green' finds favor. ....Businesses are planning to use a new tax arrangement to provide financing for energy efficiency upgrades with no upfront cost. 6. MacArthur Foundation selects 22 'geniuses'. ....The 22 recipients of the $500,000 'genius awards' selected by the John D. and CAtherine T. MacArthur Foundation represent a broad swath of acheivement in the arts and sciences. Today's Headlines of Interest: i]A knack for bashing orthodoxy[/i]. The Oxford don, Prof. Richard Dawkins, a liberal atheist who is arguably the world's most influential evolutionary biologist, continues to turn the prevailing view of evolution and natural selection on its head. “My interest in biology was pretty much always on the philosophical side,” he says, listing the essential questions that drive him. “Why do we exist, why are we here, what is it all about?” His greatest accomplishment has come as a profoundly original thinker, synthexizer and writer. And he has a knack, you might even say a predisposition, for assailing orthodoxy. In his landmark, The Selfish Gene, he looked at evolustion through a novel lens - that of a gene. With this, he flipped he prevailing view of evolution and natural selection on its head. At the time, the predominant popular view of evolution was that animals and insects worked together, albeit unconsciously, and that natural selection acted on individuals to do what was good for their species. “That sort of thinking was pretty dominant in the culture." ... “And it’s plain wrong. I wanted to correct that ubiquitous misunderstanding,” he said. Genes, he says, try to maximize their chance of survival. The successful ones crawl down through the generations. The losers, and their hosts, die off. A gene for helping the group could not persist if it endangered the survival of the individual. Professor Dawkins’s great intellectual conviction is that evolution is progressive, and tends to lead to more and more complexity. Species, in his view, often arrive at similar solutions to evolutionary puzzles — the need for ears, eyes, arms or an octopus’s tentacle. And, often although not invariably, bigger brains. So the saber-toothed tiger shows up as a cat in Europe and Asia, and as a marsupial in South America. Different species seized on the same carnivorous solution. (He most certainly does not, however, view evolution as progressing toward us, that is humans — were we to disappear, some other species most likely would fill our evolutionary niche.) Recently he has taken up the cudgel for atheism, The God Delusion, that has become an international best seller. Will he have the same effect on religion as he has had on evolution. Somehow I doubt it. But it's what's next that is interesting from this original thinker. The world could certainly use more of such men. Behind the poverty numbers: real lives, real pain. At a food pantry in a Chicago suburb, a 38-year-old mother of two breaks into tears. She and her husband have been out of work for nearly two years. Their house and car are gone. So is their foothold in the middle class and, at times, their self-esteem. "It's like there is no way out," says Kris Fallon. She is trapped like so many others, destitute in the midst of America's abundance. "I never understood why there were so many food pantries and why people couldn't just get on their feet and get going, but now that I'm in it, I fully understand," she said. "I sometimes feel like I am a loser ... I have never been unemployed and I never thought I would be going through this, ever." Her husband, Jim, 43, said he's looked for jobs all over the country in the past two years, and just accepted an offer of a three-month stint in Paducah, Ky., on a hotel reconstruction project. "Leaving for a job out of state for three months is what I have to do," he said. "It's terrible but it's our reality ... I guess this is the new America." Last week, the Census Bureau released new figures showing that nearly one in six Americans lives in poverty — a record 46.2 million people. The poverty rate, pegged at 15.1 percent, is the highest of any major industrialized nation, and many experts believe it could get worse before it abates. Some were outraged by the statistics. Marian Wright Edelman of the Children's Defense Fund called the surging child poverty rate "a national disgrace." Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., cited evidence that poverty shortens life spans, calling it "a death sentence for tens and tens of thousands of our people." Nearly two years ago, Tim Cordova was laid off from his job as a manager at a McDonald's, and his wife, Sandra, was an employee at a Subway restaurant, As the economy worsened in New Mexico, one of the nation's poorest states, Cordova struggled to find work and his wife's hours were slashed until she, too, was laid off. They moved to a smaller house, then to a small apartment. By this June, unemployment benefits had run out and they resorted to living out of their Ford Focus. "I was searching for jobs while I was collecting unemployment, and I could not get hired at all," said Cordova, 41, who is now living with his wife at an emergency homeless shelter called Joy Junction. Jeremy Reynalds, founder and CEO of Joy Junction, said he's never seen such high levels of homelessness and poverty in his 25 years of running the shelter, now New Mexico's largest. "Demand is going higher, and higher, and higher," he said. "I mean, it really is scary." Just a few years ago, the shelter was averaging around 100 residents a night. Now, Reynolds says, it's regularly filled with 300 every evening, and people are turned away every day. The Cordovas are taking advantage of Joy Junction's life-skills programs. Sandra Cordova is taking computer classes and Tim is helping with shelter security. Both said they are not ashamed of their situation. Reynalds said donations to the shelter are down, but more people are helping out in person. "More people are opting to volunteer," said Reynalds, "because I think they know that are a paycheck or two away from being homeless themselves." Is this what is in store for the working class of America? Poverty, barely making ends meet? No more American dream, no more sending your kids to college? Every day more people slipping into poverty with the middle class ever shrinking? And those #@%$ Republicans haggling over cutting everything in sight but raise taxes on those who can afford it? God forbid. Let 'em starve is their motto. Gunmen attack Shiite pilgrims in Pakistan; 26 dead. Suspected Sunni extremists opened fire on Shiite Muslim pilgrims traveling by bus through southwest Pakistan, killing 26. The miiltants wit ideological and operational links to al-Qaida and the Taliban have carried out scores of bombings and shootings against Shiites in recent years, but this attack was especially bloody. The attackers in a pickup truck blocked the path of the bus, forced the passengers off. When they tried to run away, the attackers opened fire and then drove off. They left the dying and wounded where they lay for an hour before rescue arrived. Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, one of the country's most ruthless Sunni militant groups, claimed responsibility in a telephone call to a local journalist in Quetta, but that claim could not be verified. Pakistan is a majority Sunni Muslim state, with around 15 percent Shiite. Lashkar-e-Jhangvi is a Punjab-based group that has been implicated in scores of attacks on Shiites as well as attacks on government and security targets. And so it goes on. If you live in a country controlled by one religious sect, with each regarding the other as infidels, so you risk attack by the other. And remember Iran is a Shiite country vs. Sunni Saudi Arabia who both funnel money to sectariang groups that target each other. nd we deliberately got ourselves in volved in this mess in Iraq? Lord, what a mistake. We should help shore up any government in that area that is sectarian and leave the Sunni/Shiite conflict to those other idjits. Thought for Today""A faith is a necessity to a man. Woe to him who believes in nothing." — Victor Hugo, French author (1802-1885) Today's flower: Solidago sphacelata 'Golden Fleece'
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Post by pegasus on Sept 21, 2011 7:31:41 GMT -7
Good morning from Tuxy and me :)This is the 264th day of 2011 with 101 days left in the year. Today in NY's Finger Lakes at 9:25 a.m., it's mostly cloudy , temp 63ºF [Feels like 61ºF], winds SSE @ 3.4 mph, humidity 88%, pressure 30.16 in and steady, dew point 59ºF, chance of rain 30%. Today - Mostly cloudy with showers in the afternoon. High temp 76ºF and winds S @ 5-10 mph, humidity 80%, 30% chance of rain, Tonight - A few showers with mostly cloudy late. Low around 64ºF, winds S @ 5-10 mph, humidity 89%, chance of rain 50%. Today in History: 1792--the French National Assembly voted to abolish the monarchy. 1897--the NY Sun ran its famous editorial by Francis P. Church, "Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus." 1938--a hurricane struck parts of New York and New England, causing widespread damage and 700 deaths. 1957-- Perry Mason, starring Raymond Burr, debuted on CBS. 1961--the fist Boeing CH-47 Chinook military helicopter made its first flight 1970-- NFL Monday Night Football made its debut on ABC-TV with Cleveland defeating the NY Jets 31-21. 1981--the US Senate unanimously confirmed Sandra Day O'Connor as the first female Supreme Court Justice. 1996--the board of Virginia Military Institute voted to admit women. 2001--the US Congress approved $15 billion to help the airline industry reeling from the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. 2003--the Galileo spacecraft plunged into Jupiter's turbulent atmosphere, concluding a 14-year exploration of Jupiter and its moons. 2006--the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced it would recommend all Americans ages 13 to 64 be routinely tested for HIV. 2008-- Mad Men became the first basic-cable show to win a top series Emmy. 2010--the mayor and ex-city manager of Bell, Calif. were among eight current and former city officials arrested in a corruption scandal that cost the blue-collar city more than $5.5 million in excessive salaries and illegal personal loans. World News Capsules: 1. Obama praises Libya's post-Qadhafi leaders at UN. ....Pres. Obama met Libya's transitional leader for the first time and extolled what he called the Libyan people's successful struggle to depose Col. Moammar al-Qadhafi. 2. Qadhafi calls new Libya government a propped-up 'charade'. ....Col. Moammar al-Qadhafi denounced the insurgents who toppled him as they were welcomed at the UN General Assembly. 3. Mortars fall n Yemeni capital as battles continue. ....Violence in recent days, with more than 50 killed, has constituted the worst outbreak in Sana since the beginning of the uprising in Yemen. 4. A banker's secret wealth. ....As a global debate intensifies over heavier taxes on the rich, the family of Emilio Botin, a powerful Spanish banker, is trying to explain a Swiss bank account that went undeclared for decades. 5. American is to join the Bolshoi Ballet. ....David Hallberg, a principal dancer with American Ballet Theater, is becoming the first American star to enlist permanently with the fabled Bolshoi Ballet of Moscow. US News Capsules: 1. Political shift in California trips Brown. ....Gov. Jerry Brown said he found dealing with Republicans in Sacramento far harder than it had been in his previous term. 2. Amorous squid seeks partner; any sex will do. ....A squid that lives a solitary life in the dark waters of the Pacific Oceans is the latest addition to the 100s of species that are known to engage in same-sex sex. 3. Nickel sales just the tonic for a soda fountain's revival. ....Five-cent colas, coffee and ice cream for sale at Ava Drug, a pharmacy in Missouri, have been taking older generations back to the '50s while drawing in a new crowd. 4. A tax others embrace, US opposes. ....Conservatives strongly oppose Pres. Obama's call for a tax on millionaires, but there are signs that Americans may be more open to the idea, which is popular in Europe. 5. S.E.C. hid its lawyer's Madoff ties. ....A conflict-of-interest case involving David M. Becker, the former general counsel of the Securities and Exchange Commission, is being referred to the Department of Justice for a possible criminal investigation. Thought for Today"The only true measure of success is the ratio between what we might have done and what we might have been on the one hand, and the thing we have made and the things we have made of ourselves on the other." — H.G. Wells, English author (1866-1946) Today's flower: Ceratostigma plumbaginoides or plumbago
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Post by pegasus on Sept 21, 2011 11:21:09 GMT -7
Today's Headline of Interest: Blast in Michigan was from car bomb. Attorney and two sons seriously injured; investigators sift through wreckage for clues. Emergency responders rushed to the site of the explosion near a highway underpass in Monroe, Mich., about 35 miles southwest of Detroit. The vehicle's three occupants were taken to the hospital in serious condition. "There was a lot of power behind it. The victims were very fortunate, very blessed, to be alive," said Donald Dawkins of the US Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF). The victims were identified as an attorney specializing in business disputes and family law who was driving his sons to football practice. The ATF is offering a reward of up to $10,000 for information leading to an arrest. I hope that the tree victims recover with no lingering effects and that they catch the coward(s) who did this. Iran frees 2 Americans after $1 million bail paid. Men flown out after being held for two years and convicted on charges of spying (for who?). And let's correct something in the headline - blackmail not bail. Have you ever heard of convicts being let out of prison on bail once they've been convicted? This is just the same as the Somali pirates getting ransom money for the ships and crews they hijack. Reporters saw a convoy of vehicles with Swiss and Omani diplomats leaving Evin prison with Shane Bauer and Josh Fattal inside, heading to an airport in the capital Tehran. Switzerland's ambassador later confirmed they had been flown out on a jet sent by Oman. According to their lawyer Masoud Shafiei, the $500,000 bail per person was posted by Oman. Shane Bauer, a freelance journalist, grew up in Onamia, Minn., and Josh Fattal, an environmental activist, is from suburban Philadelphia. Well, at least their long ordeal is over. Now, does the US recompense Oman for posting the bail? After Supreme Court ruling, firms divide and conquer in consumer cases. If it seems easier lately for companies to add small fees n your bills and harder for you to get your money back, that's because it is. A Supreme Court decision that was denounced as a "crushing blow to consumers" when it was announced in April has become exactly that, according to lawyers who argue on behalf of alleged victims of corporate cheating. The decision upheld corporations' right to enforce fine-print contract language that compels consumers to waive their rights to lawsuits and is being used to squelch legal cases all across the country. "(The Supreme Court decision) gave the telecom companies a license to commit petty theft without ever having to face the consequences," said David DiSabato, a N.J. attorney specializing in consumer law. He told the story of John Considine of Rutherford, N.J., who found several phantom $10 charges on his Verizon cell phone bill from firms offering ring tones, horoscopes and other services he didn't want. In one case, he couldn't even find out the identity of the company levying the charge. Verizon filed a motion to dismiss and to compel arbitration, in which it is expected to prevail. "The telecom companies get rich by committing theft against consumers on a massive scale, and (the decision) deprives consumers of any meaningful ability to fight back." Considine's case is among countless others around the country affected by the ruling, known as AT&T Mobility vs. Concepcion. In that case, the Supreme Court ruled that a California law prohibiting waiver of class action lawsuit rights was trumped by the Federal Arbitration Act. Open season was on. The ruling is fostering decisions that a company's right to enforce arbitration clauses trumps almost every other interest -- and it's falling like a hammer on consumer cases around the country. For years, members of Congress have proposed legislation, such as the Fairness in Arbitration Act, designed to limit companies' ability to enforce fine-print lawsuit bans in consumer contracts. A form of such relief was passed as part of the omnibus Dodd-Frank financial reform bill. The new Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection is compelled to study the issue, and after reporting to Congress, will have the right to restrict arbitration uses by companies. That agency's fate, however -- let alone its ability to complete studies and enforce new rules – is up in the air. Meanwhile, the legal strategy of divide and conquer – one consumer facing a $10 charge is easy to quiet, while 100,0000 is a massive headache – now appears to be the law of the land. In states where arbitration has become the rule, consumers can no longer even get attorneys to help them and once (consumers) are sent to arbitration the system is biased against them. Welcome to the new world of Supreme Court conservative, turn-back-the-clock rulings. We've gotten used to being able to band together to oppose large corporations, but no more. That is over, at least until Congress passes a law. And with this Congress, it will be a cold day in you know where before that happens. R.E.M. announces they're calling it quits. Fans of the long-running rock band got a shock when the group announced on its website that they wee calling it quits. "To our Fans and Friends: As R.E.M., and as lifelong friends and co-conspirators, we have decided to call it a day as a band," said a statement at remhq. "We walk away with a great sense of gratitude, of finality, and of astonishment at all we have accomplished. To anyone who ever felt touched by our music, our deepest thanks for listening." R.E.M. R.E.M. formed in Athens, Ga., in 1980 with singer Michael Stipe, guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills and drummer Bill Berry. The alternative rockers found an audience among college-radio faithful and went on to release 15 albums. The band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2007. All good thins eventually come to an end. I wonder what Michael Stipe and Peter Buck will do now?
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Post by pegasus on Sept 22, 2011 6:29:55 GMT -7
Good morning from Tuxy and me :)This is the 265th day of 2011 with 100 days left in the year. Today in NY's Finger Lakes at 7:03 a.m., it's lightly raining , temp 67ºF [Feels like 67ºF], winds S @ 5 mph, humidity 87%, pressure 30.04 in and falling, dew point 63ºF. Today - Showers this morning with thunderstorms developing during the afternoon. High temp 71ºF and winds SW @ 5-10 mph, humidity 86%, 60% chance of rain. Tonight - Cloudy with showers . Low around 59ºF, winds light & variable, humidity 90%, chance of rain 30%. Today in History: 1776--Capt. Nathan Hale, age 21, was hanged as a spy by the British. 1792--the 1st French Republic was proclaimed. 1862--Pres. Lincoln issued a preliminary Emancipation Proclamation, declaring all slaves in rebel states should be free as of 1 Jan 1963. 1911--Boston Rustlers pitcher Cy Young, age 44, won his 511th and final win with a 1-0 shutout over the Pittsburgh Pirates. 1927--Gene Tunney defended his heavyweight boxing title vs. Jack Dempsey in the famous "long-count" fight in Chicago. 1949--the Soviet Union exploded its first atomic bomb. 1964--the musical Fiddler on the Roof opened on Broadway, running for 3,242 performances. 1975--Sara Jane Moore tried to shoot Pres. Ford in San Francisco but missed. (Served 32 years in prison, paroled 31 Dec 2007) 1980--war erupted between Iran and Iraq, lasting nearly 8 years. 1995--Time Warner bought Turner Broadcasting System for $7.5 billioin. 2004-- Lost premiered on ABC-TV. 2008--the first changes to the penny in 50 years with a new design replacing the Lincoln Memorial on the back was unveiled. World News Capsules: 1. Obama says Palestinians are using wrong forum. ....Negotiations, not the UN, offer the best path to statehood, Pres. Obama told the UN General Assembly. 2. 8 months after first protests, Yemen enters dangerous new phase. ....A cease=fire late Tuesday appeared to have sharply reduced fighting in Yemen's war-torn capital, but explosions and heavy gunfire could still be heard. 3. NATO extends Libya bombing campaign. ....With loyalists of Col. Muammar al-Qaddhafi still entrenched in a number of places, NATO said it was authorizing an extension of its bombing operations. US News Capsules: 1. Davis is executed in Georgia. ....The execution of Troy Davis, age 42, occurred last night (time of death 11:08 p.m.), after the US Supreme Court refused to grant a stay of execution after four hours of deliberation. 2. Young adults make gains in health insurance coverage. ....Young adults, long the group most likely to be uninsured, are gaining health coverage faster than expected since the 2010 health law began allowing parents to cover them as dependens on family policies. 3. Data show county's pain as economy plummeted. ....According to an analysis of census figures, the poverty rate in Greenwood, S.C. more than doubled to 24% from 2007 to 2010, the largest increase in the nation. 4. Ouster of Hewlett-Packard CEC is espected. ....Directors were said to be considering Meg Whitman, the former chief of eBay, to succeed Léo Apothaker. Hewlitt-Packard's trouble with its CEO lies with its board of directors, whish is rife with animosities, suspicion, distrust and personal ambition. 5. Del Monte Fresh Produce resists safety regulations. ....Del Monte Fresh Produce has accused federal and state regulators of bullying andoverreacing in a case involving contaminated melons. Today's Headlines of Interest: 2 police officers charged in death of Calif. man.. Prosecutors charged one Fullerton police officer with murder and another with manslaughter in the killing of Kelly Thomas, age 37, an unarmed, mentally ill homeless man who was pummeled, shocked with a Taser and slammed with the butt of a stun gun in a beating that lasted nearly 10 minutes. Officer Manuel Ramos was charged with one count each of 2nd-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter. Police Cpl. Jay Cicinelli was charged with one count each of involuntary manslaugher and excessive force. Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas said evidence showed Thomas was acting "in self-defense, in pain and in a state of panic." He added, "His numerous pleas of 'I'm sorry,' 'I can't breathe,' 'Help Dad' (were) all to no avail. Screams, loud screams, didn't help." The coroner listed the cause of death as mechanical compression of the thorax, which made it impossible for Thomas to breathe normally and deprived his brain of oxygen, Rackauckas said. Other injuries to the face and head contributed to the death, the prosecutor said. Thomas suffered from schizophrenia and lived on the streets even though he received support from family and friends. If convicted of all charges, Ramos could face a maximum sentence of 15 years to life in prison. Cicinelli could face a maximum sentence of four years if convicted. As the mother of a schizophrenic son, I am appalled at this incident and applaud the DA for taking steps to punish these police officers. There have been way too many incidents like this across our country. Too many police officers let their police powers go to their heads, thinking that they can do things like this with impunity. I can't help wondering how many homeless or minorities have suffered similar beatings but without dying. I would bet there have been countless incidents over the years. F-22 Raptors return to service Wednesday. The US Air Force's fleet of 170 F-22 stealth fighters will return to service, officials said. They were put on stand-down in May over concerns about the system that delivered oxygen to pilots aboard the jets. This came after 12 pilots reported hypoxia-like symptoms since 2008, Hypoxia is when the body does not receive enough oxygen. The Air Force didn't explain what has changed, saying "We're managing the risks with our aircrews, and we're continuing to study the F-22's oxygen systems and collect data to improve its performance." The F-22 Raptor, made by Lockheed Martin Corp., was introduced in 2005 and the Air Force says it has flown over 300 missions. I'm not really surprised that the Air Force hasn't given any details. I don't think we should expect such information be made public for all to read, friend and foe. UK to pay victims of 1972 Bloody Sunday massacre. Britain said it will offer compensation payments to the families of people killed and wounded on Bloody Sunday, a nearly 40-year-old massacre by British paratroopers in Northern Ireland that fueled Irish Catholic support for the IRA. 13 people were killed and 14 wounded on 30 Jan 1972 in Londonderry when the soldiers opened fire on a Catholic crowd demonstrating against Britain's detention without trial of Irish Republican Army suspects. Britain compounded local fury by hastily ruling that the soldiers, none of whom were wounded, were responding to attacks and gunmen. Last year, Prime Minister David Cameron apologized after a 12-year investigation found that the soldiers were not under attack and fired without justification on unarmed citizens. The Defense Milinistry confirmed it had written to lawyers representing the Londonderry victims' families seeking terms for financial payments. But some families immediately rejected any offer of financial compensation, stressing they want criminal prosecutions of those who opened fire. Nobody has ever been charged over the 13 killings. In the investigation of the massacre, the ex-paratroopers, now in their 60s and 70s, were given broad protections from criminal charges as well as anonymity in the witness box, citing the risk that IRA dissidents might target them in retaliation. I guess it's better late than never, but what good would it do to prosecute men now in their 60s and 70s? Take the money and forgive. Thought for Today"Life resembles a novel more often than novels resemble life." — George Sand, French author (1804-1876). Today's flower: Silphium lacinlatum or compass plant
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Post by pegasus on Sept 22, 2011 12:42:59 GMT -7
Tainted cantaloupe toll rises to 55 ill, 8 deaths. This monrning I wrote the above quote in my US news issues section. Now it appears that the problem is greater than inferred by that paragraph. The told of listeria food poisoing infections tied to contaminated cantaloupe has risen sharply with federal ffficials reporting 55 sickened and eight dead in 14 states after eating the tainted fruit, ,up from 35 illnesses and four deaths in 10 states. Local, state and federal health officials are investigating the widening outbreak tied to Rocky Ford-region brand whole cantaloupe shipped by Jensen Farms of HOlly, Colo. between july 29th and Sept 10th to at least 17 states and maybe more. The victims have been found to be infected with fours strains of listeria associated with the outbreak. Among victims who supplied information to health investigators, the illnesses began on or after Aug. 4. They range in age from 35 to 96, with a median age of 78. At least 43 people have been hospitalized in connection with the outbreak. More illnesses are possible, as those that occurred after Aug. 28 may not have been reported yet. Listeriosis is a serious foodborne infection that can cause illness and death in older adults, pregnant women and those with underlying medical conditions and compromised immune systems. Infections are usually caused by contaminated lunch meat, hot dogs and Mexican-style cheeses, not by produce. Illnesses could continue to be reported through October because people can develp listeriosis up to two months after eating contaminated food. And listeria bacteria can grow even if refrigerated. So consumers should discard any cantaloupe they may have, even if they have eaten it and not become ill.
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Post by pegasus on Sept 23, 2011 10:36:55 GMT -7
Happy first day of Autumn from Tuxy and me :)This is the 266th day of 2011 with 99 days left in the year. Today in NY's Finger Lakes at 10:46 a.m., it's partly cloudy , temp 64ºF [Feels like 64ºF], winds calm, humidity 87%, pressure 30.09 in and steady, dew point 60ºF. Today - Mostly cloudy with showers . High temp 73ºF and winds ESE @ 5-10 mph, humidity 82%, 30% chance of rain. Tonight - Overcast with rain showers at times . Low around 62ºF, winds SSE @ 5-10 mph, humidity 94%, chance of rain 40%. Today in History: 1779--the warship Bon Homme Richard, commanded by John Paul Jones, defeated the HMS Serapis in battle. 1780--British spy Maj. John Andre was captured with papers revealing Benedict Arnold's plot to surrender West Point. 1806--the Lewis and Clark expedition returned to St Lous after exploring the Pacific Northwest. 1846--Neptune was discovered by German astronomer Johann Gottfried Galle. 1952--Vice presidential candidate Richard Nixon delivered his "Checkers" speech defending himself against charges of improper campaign financing. 1957--9 black students were forced to withdraw from Little Rock Central High School because of a white mob outside. 1962-- The Jetsons debuted during ABC's Sunday night prime time. 2001--13 coal miners were killed in an explosion at the Blue Creek Mine No. 5 in Brookwood, Ala. 2002--Gov. Gary Davis signed a law making California first to offer workers paid family leave. 2007--Ken Burns' 15-hour seven-part documentary on World War II, The War, began on PBS. World News Capsules: 1. Harsh words from Turkey about Israel and from Iran about the US. ....Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey enumerated a long list of grievances with Israel, and Iran's president delivered an anti-Western tirade as usual. 2. The Arab Spring finds itself upstaged by a new season. ....Tensions in the Palestinian-Israeli dispute have largely overshadowed the year of Arab uprisings at the General Assembly. Resisting US pressure, Pres. Mahmoud Abbas formally requested UN membership for Palestinians. 3. Haiti leader is opposed to reduction of UN Force. ....Pres. Michel Martelly said he 'would not even think of reducing' the number of peacekeepers because Haiti remained unstable. 4. 8 months after 1st protests, Yemen enters dangerous new phase. ....In the new round of violence, street demonstrators appear to have become little more than sacrificial pawns in a long-term rivalry among members of Yemen's political elite. 5. Rape case is a rarity in Chinese justice system. ....Only after two months, eloquent pleas for justice online and a story in a local newspaper did officials act on behalf of a female teacher to bring rape charges against a government official. 6. Land dispute stirs riots in Southen China. ....Rioters besieged government buildngs and attacked police officers during two days of protests against the seizure of farmland, said officials in Shanwei. 7. Pope weathers protests and boycotts in 1st official visit. ....Pope Benedict XVI visited Berlin and celebrated Mass for more than 60,000 followers, while 1000s of opponents marched through the streets to protest his visit. 8. Europe denies two natons entry to travel zone. .....Finland and the Netherlands objected to admitting Romania and Bulgaria to the EU's passport-free travel zone, citing concerns over corruption and organzied crime. US News Capsules: 1. Jewish votes, some of them in play. ....A new Gallup poll showed Jewish voters continue to be far more enthusiastic about Pres. Obama than other Americans. Outside supermarkets and restaurants, inside bookstores and candy shops, Jewish voters in the affluent yet diverse Jewish community in north Miami said they planned to mostly stay the course. 2. Facebook as tastemaker. ....Facebook is where you go to see what your friends are up to. Now it wants to be a force that shapes what you watch, hear, read and buy. 3. Fears gnaw at liberalism, ....Local Jewish leaders say most ot the more than 200,000 Jews who live in greater Philadelphia remain Democrats and are almost certain to support Pres. Obama in 2012. 4. Suit throws open window into Mets owners' holdings and history. ....Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz's other business inteests had remained largely out of view until the trustee representing the victims of the Bernie Madoff fraud sued the two men. 5. Arts: Ingenuity is a thing with feathers. ...."Hats: An Anthology by Stephen Jones" at the Bard Graduate Center, NYC, offers a wide-ranging overview of hats, from an ancient Egyptian fez to Babe Ruth's cap to the eccentric creations of modern milliners. Today's Headlines of Interest: UPDATE: Lives devastated by listeria as cantaloupe outbreak grows.Experts worry legal battle being waged by another produce comany could impact safety system. Government health officials and food safety trackers say the listeria toll is likely to rise as more suspected infections are confirmed. They have counted as many as 68 infections and 11 deaths, which would put the mortality total higher than the 2009 salmonella outbreak in peanut butter that sickened nearly 700 and claimed nine lives. On Thursday, the federal Food and Drug Administration said that audits of Jensen Farms records revealed the suspect fruit was shipped to 22 states, up from an original estimate of 17. This is the 2nd time in six months that cantaloupes have been at the center of a food poisoning outbreak. In March, an outbreak of rare salmonella Panama in cantaloupe sickened 20 people in 10 states and led to a voluntary recall by Del Monte Fresh Produce Inc. The firm, one of the nation’s largest providers of fresh produce, later sued the FDA and threatened legal action against an Oregon epidemiologist, Dr. William Keene, claiming that that neither the agency nor the scientist had evidence Del Monte’s fruit was tainted. Cantaloupe is particularly susceptible to contamination, ranking among the top five kinds of commonly tainted produce, next to spinach, lettuce, tomatoes and green onions, said Doug Powell, a professor of food safety at Kansas State University. “What makes cantaloupe stand out is a couple of things. There’s the structure of the fruit. Think about a honeydew melon. They’ve smooth and very hard. Cantaloupe is very soft,” Powell said. With its bumpy rind and succulent flesh, cantaloupe can easily become tainted at any point from field to table, Powell said. Bacteria on the skin are hard to remove, and they can be spread to the edible portion of the melon when a knife slices through. There’s some evidence that the porous skin might actually allow tainted water to permeate the flesh, he added. However the fruit became tainted, the results can be dangerous, particularly in older people, pregnant women and those with compromised immune systems. Victims in the outbreak range in age from 35 to 96, with an average age of 78, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “One you get a virulent strain of listeria, the kill rate is about 30%,” Powell said. In the lawsuit against the FDA and in a now-dismissed complaint filed with an Oregon ethics commission against Keene, the state epidemiologist who investigated the March cantaloupe outbreak, Del Monte claims that neither the agency nor the scientist had direct evidence to blame the company’s fruit for the illnesses. In July, the FDA enacted an import alert against the company’s cantaloupe from Guatemala. Del Monte officials accused Keene of a “cursory investigation” and charged that the FDA had no evidence that Del Monte cantaloupes caused illnesses because none ever tested positive for the salmonella Panama strain that caused the outbreak. Food safety experts, however, said epidemiological investigations often don’t include positive tests because the food has already been consumed. Many outbreaks are confirmed only through interviews with ill people that reveal a common food source, Powell said. In the case of the new listeria outbreak, a health warning and recall was issued a week before experts actually detected the bacteria, possibly halting more infections and death.“Can you imagine the outcry if Colorado had waited an extra week to go public in the current outbreak?” he said. “Del Monte’s lawsuit will, I’m afraid, cause health folks to be slower in going public.” Julian Assange lashes out at release of 'Unauthorized Autobiography'. Last week it was an eBay auction of WikiLeaks memorabilia inscribed by "Julian A." Now comes the publication of an improbably titled Julian Assange: The Unauthorized Biography, a portrait of the anti-secrecy group's heavily mediatized founder that has been disowned by Assange. Mr. Assange posted a lengthy statement online disowning the book and lashing out against the publisher, Canongate. The publication of Mr. Assange’s work without his permission — a leak of sorts — appeared sublimely ironic to many observers, but it was not leaked, per se. It was surreptitiously published and shipped over his objections that he lodged in March after reading a draft and declaring, "All memoir is prostitution." Ah, how do you like it Mr. Assange, now that the shoe is on the other foot and someone has leaked something about you? Thought for Today"Trust your own instinct. Your mistakes might as well be your own, instead of someone else's." — Billy Wilder, Austro-Hungarian-born movie director (1906-2002). Today's flower: Tricyrtis hirta or Japanese toad lily
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Post by pegasus on Sept 24, 2011 9:11:45 GMT -7
Good morning from Tuxy and me :)This is the 267th day of 2011 with 98 days left in the year. Today in NY's Finger Lakes at 10:17 a.m., it's cloudy , temp 61ºF [Feels like 61ºF], winds SSE @ 3 mph, humidity 83%, pressure 30.08 in and rising, dew point 56ºF, chance of rain 20%. Today - Mostly cloudy . High temp 71ºF and winds NW @ 5-10 mph, humidity 86%, 10% chance of rain 20%. Tonight - Some clouds . Low around 30ºF, winds light & variable, humidity 91%, chance of rain 10%. Today in History: 1789--the US Congress passed the 1st Judiciary Act that provided for an attorney general and a Supreme Court. 1869--financiers Jay Gould and James Fisk tried to corner the gold market sending Wall Street into t a panic and leaving 1000s of investors in financial ruin. 1957--the Brooklyn Dodgers played their last game at Ebbets Field. (Moved to Los Angeles for the next season.) 1961-- Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color premiered on NBC. 1968-- 60 Minutes premiered on CBS. 1969--the Chicago Eight went on trial for inciting riots at the 1968 Democratic national convention. 1996--the US and other nuclear powers signed a treaty to end all testing and development of nuclear weapons. 1998--redesigned $20 bills meant to be harder to counterfeit went into circulation. 2007--United Auto Workers went on strike at GM plants in the first nationwide action since 1976. 2010--Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg pledged $100 million to Newark, N.J. schools. World News Capsules: 1. Palestinians rally in West Bank for Abbas speech; clashes reported. ....1000s massed in cities in the West Bank to watch Pres. Mahmoud Abbas formally announce the Palestinians request for full membership in the UN. The question Palestinian and Israeli security forces are facing is whether the relative quiet of the past few years is nearing an end. 2. Accused of fighting for Qaddafi, a Libyan town's residents face reprisals. ....More than a month ago, as Qaddafi forces retreated from their town, virtually all of Tawerga's estimated 30,000 residents fled the city, fearing wrath from their neighbors in Misurata. 3. Putin will seek Russian presidency in 2012. ....Vladimire V. Putin will run for president next year, possibly extending his rule until 2024, and the current president, Dmitri Medvedev, could take his place as prime minister. And the revolving door continues. 4. Protesters killed in new attacks in Yemen, doctor says. ....At least 17 protesters at an anti-government protest died after being fired upon, less than a day after Pres. Ali Abdullah Saleh had returned to Yemen. 5. Radioactivity in Japan rice raises worries. ....Government officials ordered more tests after detecting elevated levels of radiation in rice crops near the crippled nuclear power plant at Fukushima. 6. Allies of French President are questioned in graft inquiry. ....In an inquiry that has gathered momentum, three allies of Pres. Nicolas Sarkozy are part of an investigation involving suspected corruption in the sale of submarines in Pakistan. 7. Journalist is detained in China for article on sex slaves. ....A journalist was detained by security agents after reporting that a former civil servant kept six women enslaved in an underground bunker, and that he killed two of them. US News Capsules: 1. Midwest farmers are on alert against pig thieves. ....A rash of thefts has law enforcement officials stumped. Among other challenges, the missing hogs are difficult to single out. "The all look alike," said a sheriff. 2. 'Parent Trigger' law to reform schools faces challenges. ....Parents at more than a dozen schools in California are hoping to take advantage of a trigger law, demanding that their schools radically improve. 3. Solyndra officials take 5th at House hearing. ....A panel is examining how the solar company failed after getting $528 million in government loans. 4. Shutdown closer as Senate blocks spending bill. ....Partisansip flares again as the Senate rejected a stopgap spending bill, less than 12 hours after the House's Republican leaders had forced it through on their 2nd try. 5. In time of scrimping, fun stuff is still selling. ....Consumers have been splurging on indulgences while paring many humdrum household expenses, according to industry data for the last year. 6. Stance on immigration may hurt Perry early on. ....For Gov. Rick Perry of Texas, the issue of immigration could be treacherous in early-nominating states that have few Hispanics. Today's Headlines of Interest: Obama turns some powers of education back to states. With his declaration that he would waive the most contentious provisions of a federal education law, Pres. Obama effectively rerouted the nation’s education history after a turbulent decade of overwhelming federal influence. He invited states to reclaim the power to design their own school accountability and improvement systems, upending the centerpiece of the Bush-era No Child Left Behind law, a requirement that all students be proficient in math and reading by 2014. But experts said it was a measure of how profoundly the law had reshaped America’s public school culture that even in states that accept the administration’s offer to pursue a new agenda, the law’s legacy will live on in classrooms, where educators’ work will continue to emphasize its major themes, like narrowing student achievement gaps, and its tactics, like using standardized tests to measure educators’ performance. The 2002 law required all schools to administer reading and math tests every year, and to increase the proportion of students passing them until reaching 100 percent in 2014. Schools that failed to keep pace were to be labeled as failing, and eventually their principals fired and staffs dismantled. That system for holding schools accountable for test scores has encouraged states to lower standards, teachers to focus on test preparation, and math and reading to crowd out history, art and foreign languages. Actually designing a new school accountability system, and obtaining statewide acceptance of it, represents a complex administrative and political challenge for governors and other state leaders, said Gene Wilhoit, executive director of the Council of Chief State School Officers, which the White House said played an important role in developing the waiver proposal. Developing new educator evaluation systems and other aspects of follow-through could take states three years or more, he said. Officials in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut, and in at least eight other states — Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Idaho, Minnesota, Virginia and Wisconsin — said Friday that they would probably seek the waivers. Well, another new way of doing things. I hope it works because right now our students are becoming less and less able to compete the the world of today. Palestinian bid for UN membership effectively on hold after global powers push to restart talks/ The Palestinian bid for UN membership was put on hold when global powers agreed on a proposal for restarting direct talks between Palestinians and Israelis, with the goal of achieving a comprehensive settlement between the two by the end of next year. Leaders of the so-called Middle East Quartet (US, Russia, EU and UN) hammered out the proposal after several days of marathon negotiations. The US and UN officials said that Abbas's application was unlikely to come before the Security Council if peace talks were underway. It called on the two sides to present detailed proposals within three months, tackling the key issues of borders and security. The proposal also endorsed Pres. Obama’s vision, for separate Palestinian and Israeli states with borders that roughly coincide with those that existed before the June 1967 Arab-Israeli war, with mutually agreed adjustments. “People have got to reflect on this and decide that, whatever happens here at the U.N., in the end it’s what happens in Palestine and Israeli that really counts,” former British Prime Minister & the Quartet's lead envoy Tony Blair said to reporters moments after the Quartet statement was announced And will this work? I certainly hope so. It's time that there was a permanent settlement of this that ends with the Palestinians having their own homeland, just like the Israelis. Thought for Today"Do not weep; do not wax indignant. Understand." — Baruch Spinoza, Dutch philosopher (1632-1677). Today's flower: Callicarpa dichotoma or beautyberry
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Post by pegasus on Sept 25, 2011 4:59:36 GMT -7
Good morning from Tuxy and me :)This is the 268th day of 2011 with 97 days left in the year. Today in NY's Finger Lakes at 7:36 a.m., it's cloudy , temp 59ºF [Feels like 59ºF], winds calm, humidity 93%, pressure 30.16 in and rising, dew point 57ºF. Today - Partly cloudy . High temp 79ºF and winds E @ 5-10 mph, humidity 76%, 10% chance of rain. Tonight - Partly cloudy . Low around 62ºF, winds light & variable, humidity 89%, chance of rain 20%. Today in History: 1493--Christopher Columbus set sail with a flotilla of 17 ships on his 2nd voyage to the New Wrold. 1513--Spanish explorer Vasco de BAlboa crossed the Isthmus of Panama to reach the Pacific Ocean. 1789--the 1st US Congress adopted 12 amendments to the Constitution and sent them to the states for ratification. Ten of them became the Bill of Rights. 1890--Mormon president Wilford Woodruff issued a manifesto formally renouncing thep ractice of polygamy. 1911--ground was broken for Boston's Fenway Park. 1956--the first trans-Atlantic telephone cable went into service. 1957--with 300 US Army troops standing guard, nine black students were escorted back to Central HIgh School in Little Rock, Ark. 2001--Saudi Arabia formally cut its relations with Afghanistan's hard-line ruling Taliban. 2003--France reported a death toll of 14,802 from a heat wave. 2006--the Louisiana Superdome, a symbol of misery during Hurricane Katrina, reopened for a New Orleans Saints football game. 2006--British forces in Iraq shot and killed Omar al-Farouq, a leading al-Qaida terrorist, more than a year after he embarrassed the US military by excaping from a maximum security mlitary prison in Afghanistan. World News Capsules: 1. Economic reforms likely to continue under Putin. ....Russia has already embarked on reforms under Pres. Dmitri Medvedev to diversity away from oil dependence and foster a high-technology sector. Both Muscovites and people in surrounding villages seemed to share a fatalism about Vladimire Putin's planned return to the presidency. 2. Libyan fighters renew attack on Qaddafi's hometown. ....As the battle went on, the daugher of Col. Qaddafi became the latest family member to broadcast a recorded taunt of the provisional authorities. 3. Violence surges in Yemen despite call for cease-fire. ....A day after Pres. Ali Abdullah Saleh returned in Yemen, hif forces escalated attacks on the opposition, leaving more than 40 people dead in the capital. 4. Bahrain vote erupts in violence. ....Police and hundreds of protesters clashed during parliamentary elections, which the opposition boycotted. 5. Mexico turns to social media for informatin and survival. ....Social media has become a necessity in Mexico, with a mission far different from that of the Arab revolutions - here, it is deployed for local survival. 6. Power black out hits Chile and shuts copper mines. ....A massive power blackout paralyzed crucial copper mines in Chile and darkened vast swaths of the country including the capital Santiago before energy was largely restored. US News Capsules: 1. In Arizona, complaints that an accent can hinder a teacher's career. ....A federal investigation of possible civil rights violatins prompted the state to call off its accent police. 2. Stalking the biggest star in Hollywood: Its Sign. ....More are finding their way to the Holllywood landmark and annoyed residents respond - We want to be left alone. 3. Midwest farmers are on alert against pig thieves. ....A rash of thefts has law enforcement officials stumped. Among other challenges, the missing hogs are difficult to singel out - "They all look alike," said a sheriff. 4. Satellite ends fall, likely in the Pacific Ocean. ....NASA said the six-ton Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite crashed between 11:23 p.m. Friday and 1:09 a.m. Saturday. 5. Cain upsets Perry at Florida Straw Poll. ....For Gov. Rick Perry, his stance on immigration could be treacherous in early-nominating states that have few Hispanics. Today's Headlines of Interest: Shutdown closer as US Senate blocks spending bill. An impasse between the HOuse and Senate over a bill t keep the governement going after Sept. 30th and provide aid to natural disaster victims deepened as the Senate easily shot down a House measure passed just hours before. House members, considering their work done, headed home to their districts for a week’s recess, trailing uncertainty behind them since no resolution to the standoff appeared imminent. The Senate set a procedural vote for Monday evening in an effort to advance an alternative, but it was unclear whether it could draw sufficient support or whether Republican leaders would call members of the House back to consider it even if did pass the Senate. Without an agreement on a bill to pay for federal operations beginning Oct. 1, the government would run out of money before lawmakers returned unless some resolution was found. The Federal Emergency Management Agency has postponed several repair projects, and the money in its disaster bank is at its lowest levels in history. With the spending bill stalled, a spokesman for President Obama expressed alarm at the inability of Congress to reach a deal. “The members of Congress work for the American people,” said the spokesman, Jay Carney, in a briefing with reporters. “They work for the constituents who sent them here, in their districts and states. We are absolutely confident that the vast majority of those constituents are not asking very much when they insist that Congress perform the basic functions that they were sent here to perform, and that they do not let politics get in the way of what should be a relatively straightforward exercise of funding the government.” That may be true but unfortuantely, it seems that most of this Congress is more concerned with politics and re-election than doing the work they are being paid for. Maybe we should change their pay - put them on hourly wage, like many of their constituents, and pay them only for the time they are in Washington working at their job of governing. Doubts about Perry among some in Republican Party. His record onimmigration, public health and Social Security have some anxious. Texas Gov. Rick Perry is struggling to defend his position in the race for the Republican presidential nomination. Republicans in early voting states are openly questioning the strength of his candidacy where the sudden national scrutiny has put him in the front-runner bull's eye. Unaligned Republicans in New Hampshire and Iowa — including some who backed Romney four years ago and are looking for an alternative — have watched Perry closely this month to see if the early buzz would become lasting campaign strength. But his debate performances, including bobbled attempts Thursday night in Florida at painting Romney as a flip-flopper, did not impress some influential activists. "The guy just isn't ready for prime time. It's not the issues themselves. It's how he handles them," said Doug Gross, a Des Moines lawyer who was Romney's Iowa co-chairman in 2008 but isn't backing any one candidate yet this year. "He doesn't look like a president." And activists have discovered policy differences as they get to know Perry. He has drawn sharp criticism for requiring 6th-grade girls in Texas to be vaccinated against a sexually transmitted virus that can cause cancer, a position that frustrates libertarians and social conservatives alike. And on immigration, Perry's opposition to a border fence and support for education benefits for illegal immigrants who came to the country as children have been unpleasantly eye-opening to some in Iowa. Top Perry strategist Dave Carney said the notion the governor is floundering is "more wishful thinking from other camps." So far I have not seen anything about Perry that indicates that he is of presidential caliber. Put him on the spot and he blathers, mumbles, stumbles and damns himself with his worlds and behavior. But then I'm a Democrat and wouldn 't vote for him or any of the other Republican pesidential wanna-bes. Thought for Today"It is as fatal as it is cowardly to blink (at) facts because they are not to our taste." — John Tyndall, English physicist (1820-1893). Today's flower: Heptacodium miconioides or seven-son flower
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Post by pegasus on Sept 26, 2011 9:00:04 GMT -7
Good morning from Tuxy and me :)This is the 269th day of 2011 with 96 days left in the year. Today in NY's Finger Lakes at 10:46 a.m., it's partly cloudy , temp 72ºF [Feels like 72ºF], winds ESE @ 7 mph, humidity 79%, pressure 30.04 in and steady, dew point 62ºF, chance of rain 10%. Today - Mostly cloudy followed by partial clearing. Near record high temp 81ºF, winds ES @ 5-10 mph, humidity 74%, 20% chance of rain, Tonight - Mostly cloudy with isolated thunderstorms late. Low around 65ºF, winds SE @ 5-10 mph, humidity 89%, chance of rain 30%. Today in History: 1777--British troops occupied Philadelphia, Pa. 1789--Thomas Jefferson was appointed the 1st Secretary of State, Edmund Randolph 1st attorney general and John Jay the 1st Chief Justice of the US. 1892--JOhn Philip Sousa and his band performed for the first time at the Stillman Music Hall in Plainfield, N.J. 1914--the Federal Trade Commission was established. 1950--UN troops recaptured Seoul, South Korea from the North Korean army. 1957--the hit musical West Side Story opened on Broadway. 1960--the first TV debate between presidential candidates (Nixon vs. Kennedy) took place in Chicago. 1969--The Beatles released their Abbey Road album. 1981--the twin-engine Boeing 767 made its debut. 1986--William H. Rehnquist was sworn in as the 16th Chief Justice of the US and Antonin Scalia joined the court as its 103rd associate justice. 2001--In Cincinnati, Stephen Roach, a white police officer, was acquitted of negligent homicide in the shooting death of Timothy Thomas, an unarmed black man; the killing had sparked the city's worst racial unrest in three decades. 2001--Pope John Paul II paid his respects to the vast number of Armenians who had perished under Ottoman rule. 2005--US Army Pfc. Lynndie England was convicted on six counts stemming from the Abu Ghraib prison abuse scandal. 2005--international weapons inspectors announced the Irish Republican Army's full disarmament. 2006--former Enron CFO Andrew Fastow was sentenced to six years in prison for his role in the fallen energy company's bankruptcy. 2006--Iva Toguri D'Aquino, who was convicted and later pardoned for being World War II propagandist "Tokyo Rose," died in Chicago at age 90. 2006--World Golf Hall of Famer Byron Nelson died in Roanoke, Texas, at age 94. 2008--Oscar-winning actor Paul Newman died at home at age 83. World News Capsules: 1. Former rebels' rivalries hold up governing in Libya. ....A vacuum at the top is hampering efforts to unify the country, exert civilian authority over freewheeling militias and get control of the weaons that now flood the streets. 2. As gangs move in on Mexico's schools, teachers say 'enough'. ....Extortion is a booming industry in Mexico, and teachers in Acapulco, who are receiving anonymous threats to either pay up or be killed, are protesting in large numbers. 3. In speech, Yemen president confirms support for transfer of power. ....Pres. Ali Abdullah Saleh said his deputy remained authorized to sign a transfer-of-power agreement that would lead to early presidential elections, but he did not make any new concessions. 4. Wangari Maathai, Nobel Peace Prize laureate, dies at 71. .... R.I.P. Mrs. Maathai was a kenyan environmentalist who started out paying women a few shillings to plant trees and went on to become the first African woman to win a Nobel Peace Prize. 5. French left takes control of Senate. ....The left claimed victory in electins to France's upper house inflicting a serioius defeat for Pres. Sarkozy, who faces a presidential electin contest in the coming months. 5. For Russia liberals, flickers of hope vanish. ....Vladimire V. PUtin's move to return to the presidency disheartened some of the country's educated elites, one of whom called it "the beginning of the end." Aleksei L. Kudrin, Russian finance chief, opened a rare public breach with the Kremlin, saying he would efuse to stay on under the leadership reshuffling. 6. Two Tibetan monks set themselves n fire in protest. ....Two young Tibetan monks set themselves on fire at an embattled monastery in western China to protest Chinese politicies in the area, according to a Tibet advocacy group. 6. In Syria, defectors form dissident army in sign uprising may be entering new phase. ....a group of defectors calling themselves the Free Syrian Army is attempting the first effort to organize an armed challenge to pres. Assad's rule, signaling what some hope and others fear may be a new pahse in what has been a peaceful Syrian protest movement. US News Capsules: 1. A campaign finance ruling turned to labor's advantage. ....Unions are seizing on last year's Supreme Court campaign finance ruling to change how they engage in politics and counter corporate money flowing into conservative groups. 2. Retailers are put on the spot over anti-gay aid. ....Advocates are pushing Apple, Microsoft and Wal-Mart to end indirect funding of anti-gay religious groups. 3. Protesters bare all over a proposed San Francisco law. ....A 'Nude-In' over the weekend brought attention to a proposal that would place some restrictions on public nakedness in San Francisco. 4. Netflix secures streaming deal with DreamWorks. ....The companies said it is the first time a major Hollywood company has picked Web streaming over pay television. 5. Magazines begin to sell the fashion they review. ....The fashion glossies are suddenly getting into the business of retailing the clothes they write about, raising some eyebrows in the industry. 6. Pew media study shows reliance on many outlets. ....While TV is the main source for weather, traffic and breaking news, newspapers and their Web sites are the main source for 11 other topics, the survey found. 7. Shutdown looms: Spotlight now on Senate after Boehner wrangled House GOP votes. ....With time running out, Congress returns today to try to pass a short-term funding measure to avert a government shutdown and avoid yet another market-rattling showdown over the federal budget. Today's Headlines of Interest: Sentencing shift give new leverage to prosecutors. Empowered by years ot tough sentencing-law changes in state legislatures and Congress, prosecutors have more muscle to extract guilty pleas from defendents, avoiding trials and thus saving money, by using the threat of more serious charges with mandatory sentences. Some experts say the process has become coercive in many state and federal jurisdictions, forcing defendants to weigh their options based on the relative risks of facing a judge and jury rather than simple matters of guilt or innocence. “We now have an incredible concentration of power in the hands of prosecutors,” said Richard E. Myers II, a former assistant United States attorney who is now an associate professor of law at the University of North Carolina. He said that so much influence now resides with prosecutors that “in the wrong hands, the criminal justice system can be held hostage.” Plea bargains have been common for more than a century, but lately they have begun to put the trial system out of business in some courtrooms. By one count, fewer than one in 40 felony cases now make it to trial, according to data from nine states that have published such records since the 1970s, when the ratio was about one in 12. The decline has been even steeper in federal district courts. Many researchers say the most important force in driving down the trial rate has been state and federal legislative overhauls that imposed mandatory sentences and other harsher and more certain penalties for many felonies, especially those involving guns, drugs, violent crimes and repeat offenders. In the courtroom and during plea negotiations, the impact of these stricter laws is exerted through what academics call the “trial penalty.” The phrase refers to the fact that the sentences for people who go to trial have grown harsher relative to sentences for those who agree to a plea. In some jurisdictions, this gap has widened so much it has become coercive and is used to punish defendants for exercising their right to trial, some legal experts say. Last year, there was only one acquittal for every 212 guilty pleas or trial convictions in federal district courts. Thirty years ago, the ratio was one for every 22. Well, America you asked for this and you've got it. And now you see more of the consequences for mandatory sentencing. I just hope you don't get face with it some day like a man in Florida who fired his registered firearm at a wall to scare his daughter's drug dealing boyfriend and get him out of the house. He refused a plea bargain (five years of felony probation) because he felt he was protecting his family and did not try to hurt the man. He went to trial where he was convicted for aggravated assault with a firearm that had a mandatory-minimum sentence of 20 years. At his sentencing, the defendent said he felt as if he were in “some banana republic” and described the boyfriend as a violent drug dealer. But prosecutors said the judge had “no discretion” because of the state law. Flood victims getting fed up with Congress. Standing in the living room of their house, now full of mud, slime and debris, Helen and Peter Kelly cannot believe that Congress is bickering over disaster aid to people like them. Peter Kelly, still looking shell-shocked, said: “We lost everything. Stove, washer, dryer, TV. Hot water heater, clothes, dishes, refrigerator. Everything, just gone.” And now they have lost confidence in their government and politicians. A few miles away in Falls Township, Pa., houses were upended, lifted off their foundations and carried a few hundred feet downstream. Huge piles of rubbish, furniture, mattresses, carpets and clothing line the streets. Michael J. Golembeski and his family spent the weekend cleaning up. Mr. Golembeski offered a sardonic take on the fight that has brought the federal government to the brink of a shutdown, a dispute between Republicans and Democrats in Congress over money for FEMA. “Neither side wants the other side to get credit for doing anything good,” Mr. Golembeski said. “Elections are coming up.” “Members of Congress are playing with people’s lives, not just their own political careers,” said Martin J. Bonifanti, chief of the Lake Winola volunteer fire company. “While they are rattling on among themselves down there in Washington, people are suffering.” Mr. Bonifanti said his politics were simple: “If they are in, they should be out.” FEMA provides money to eligible individuals and households to help pay for home repairs, temporary housing, replacement of personal property and other serious needs related to a disaster. In the absence of action by Congress, the agency’s disaster relief fund could be depleted by midweek, federal officials said. “Members of Congress are intelligent, but they have no common sense,” Darlene Swithers, a home-health nurse in the Wilkes-Barre area, said. “They fight too much. They should be put in a corner and take a timeout and start working together as a team. I’m so sick of hearing Republicans this and Democrats that.” Members of Congress from both parties say they want to speed help to disaster victims and pass a stopgap spending bill to keep the government open after Sept. 30. But first they must make a few points. On the CNN Sunday program State of the Union, Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) said “Tea Party Republicans” in the House were largely responsible for “the spectacle of a near government shutdown.” Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), the No. 3 Republican , said the Senate majority leader, Harry Reid, (D-Nev.), had “manufactured a crisis” over disaster aid. Uprooted and desolate, hard-working people in this part of the country expect a bit more from their government. Kenneth S. Eisenman, who had been planning to retire after 31 years as a driver for United Parcel Service, summed things up. “I’m an ex-Navy Seabee,” Mr. Eisenman said. “I paid my dues. I’ve worked since I was 10 years old. I never asked for anything from anybody. Now I’ve been sitting here for more than two weeks with nothing,” he said. “I’m very frustrated.” And still the political wrangling goes on by the millionaires in Congress with no thought for the suffering their political partisanship was causing the people of this country of ours. As a famous union organizer once said about Congress in the depths of the Great Depression, "A plague on both your houses." At home pet euthanasia grows in popularity. Jim Schenning knew he was going to lose it, and he didn’t want to lose it in public. So when the dreaded day came to end the suffering of his beloved Emma, an arthritis-stricken, 15-year-old Jack Russell terrier, Schenning didn’t go to his veterinarian’s office. Instead, he ended up cross-legged on the floor of his spare bedroom, crying quietly as Emma looked up from his lap. After a few minutes, he nodded to Julie Rabinowitz, a veterinarian he had never met before she arrived at his house a half-hour earlier. She leaned forward with a syringe. A little dog’s fatal dose of pentobarbital. “There was no whimper. Her eyes just slowly closed,” Schenning recalled. “Dr. Julie waited two or three minutes and checked her heartbeat. She said in a quiet voice, ‘Jim, she’s gone. I’m going to let myself out now.’ ” The gentle death scene was part of a growing at-home pet euthanasia movement that is beginning to relocate one of pet ownership’s most painful rituals, the final, one-way trip to the vet’s office. Like a growing number of vets, Rabinowitz decided a few years ago to build her practice on end-of-life house calls for those who want more for their pets’ last moments than a frightened scrabble on a cold steel exam table. At $200 for a sedative followed by the killing barbiturate, she charges more than twice what most vets do for an office euthanasia. But she has found no shortage of owners willing to pay the premium. “Emma saw me through two job losses, the passing of my mother and the death of my best friend,” Schenning said. “She was here for me every day with her tail wagging. I wanted her last view of the world to be my face in the place where we spent our time together.” Thought for Today"Pity the meek, for they shall inherit the earth." — Don Marquis, American journalist-author (1878-1937). Today's flower: Hibiscus 'Old Yella'
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Post by pegasus on Sept 26, 2011 17:31:24 GMT -7
Senators pass bill to avert government shutdown. The Republican-controlled House of Representatives must still sign off on the measure. The breakthrough came hours after the FEMA indicated it had enough money for disaster relief efforts through Friday. That disclosure allowed lawmakers to jettison a $1 billion replenishment that had been included in the measure — and to crack the gridlock it had caused. By a bipartisan vote of 79-12, the Democratic-controlled Senate approved the bill. If the House signs off on it, the bill assures there wold be no interruption in assistance in areas battered by disasters and the government would be able to run nrmally when the new budget year begins Saturday. "This compromise should satisfy Republicans...and it should satisfy Democrats," said Senate Majority leader Harry Reid, who added that Budget Director Jacob Lew had informed him that FEMA did not need any additional funding to meet its needs for the final few days of the budget year. House Republicans insisted that any new disaster aid for the expiring budget year be offset by cuts elsewhere in the budget, a decision that Democrats seized on in hopes of reshaping the political terrain to their advantage. While it was unclear precisely how long FEMA's remaining funds would last, one official said the agency began conserving funds last month as Hurricane Irene approached the U.S. mainland, prioritizing its aid to help individual disaster victims and pay states and local governments for immediate needs such as removing debris and building sand bag barricades. Funding of $450 million has been put on hold for longer-term needs such as reconstruction of damaged roads, the official said. In addition, the agency has been able to reclaim unused money from past disasters. So it's now all up to the House. I hope that their assumed agreement is true. I'm sick and tired of all this nonsense. I thought the super-committee tasked with presenting a plan of where and how to cut the federal budget was supposed to avoid this nonsense. Richt now I think that we, the American public, should vote out of office every single House incombent and start all over. Unfortunately, we can't do the same with the Senate.
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