Archive for June, 2010
Fisherman Exposed to Mustard Gas
June 9th, 2010Via: WBZTV: A doctor treating a commercial fisherman who was sickened after his clamming boat pulled up munitions tainted with chemicals says tests show he was exposed to mustard gas. Dr. Edward Boyer, a toxicologist at UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester, said blood and urine tests that confirmed mustard gas exposure came back Monday […]
U.S Debt to Rise to $19.6 Trillion by 2015
June 9th, 2010Via: Reuters: The U.S. debt will top $13.6 trillion this year and climb to an estimated $19.6 trillion by 2015, according to a Treasury Department report to Congress. The report that was sent to lawmakers Friday night with no fanfare said the ratio of debt to the gross domestic product would rise to 102 percent […]
Another Rig Leaking Near Near Deepwater Horizon?
June 9th, 2010Via: AP: Photographs showing a sheen of oil in the Gulf of Mexico southwest of the big BP spill are evidence only of government-approved work long under way, not a second leak, an energy company said Tuesday. Site owner Taylor Energy Co. LLC said in a written statement that a production platform about 70 miles […]
“Are you fucking happy? Are you fucking happy? The rig’s on fire! I told you this was gonna happen.”
June 8th, 2010Via: The Atlantic: A prominent Houston attorney with a long record of winning settlements from oil companies says he has new evidence suggesting that the Deepwater Horizon’s top managers knew of problems with the rig before it exploded last month, causing the worst oil spill in US history. Tony Buzbee, a lawyer representing 15 rig […]
Turning Poverty Into A Multibillion-Dollar Industry
June 8th, 2010Via: NPR: Payday lending operations have grown rapidly in the United States since the early 1990s. At the industry’s peak a few years ago, there were more payday lenders in the United States than McDonald’s and Burger King stores — combined. “The payday lender is kind of the emergency banker for the working poor,” explains […]
Gold: Record High
June 8th, 2010WARNING: This is not a recommendation to buy, sell of hold any financial instrument. Short term gold longs, beware of the possible double top situation around the $1250 level. Via: Bloomberg: Gold rose to a record on demand for a haven from financial turmoil in Europe. Gold futures rose to $1,254.50 an ounce in New […]
Afghanistan: The Longest War in American History
June 8th, 2010As long as you don’t count the Cold War, but never mind all of that. Via: ABC News: The Afghan war was enormously popular when it began on a fall Sunday eight and a half years ago. Less than a month had passed since the September 11 attacks, and President Bush could draw on deep […]
Hooked on Gadgets, and Paying a Mental Price
June 8th, 2010Via: New York Times: When one of the most important e-mail messages of his life landed in his in-box a few years ago, Kord Campbell overlooked it. Not just for a day or two, but 12 days. He finally saw it while sifting through old messages: a big company wanted to buy his Internet start-up. […]
New Oil Plume Evidence Uncovered
June 7th, 2010Via: CNN: As if the pictures of birds, fish and animals killed by floating oil in the Gulf of Mexico is not disturbing enough, scientists now say they have found evidence of another danger lurking underwater. The University of South Florida recently discovered a second oil plume in the northeastern gulf. The first plume was […]
U.S. Intelligence Analyst Arrested in Wikileaks Video Probe
June 7th, 2010I have a bit of trouble believing what Wired is reporting here. One just can’t go “rummaging through” compartmented files. Each person with access to a particular compartment would have to be individually cleared for that compartment. Say the compartmented thing is a new spy plane that is designated with the codeword AAA. Bob works […]
