Sticking It to Iran, Obama and Jobs Creation, Survey Goes Against New Oil Drilling - News Headlines 18 May 2010

From Denny: Iran continues to be a thorn in the side of the international community. The naughty little third world country has been trying to slide under the door shut in its misbehaving face by the world. Now it's made deals with Turkey for an enriched uranium swap for fuel rods on the next path to nuclear warheads. As usual they keep lying about their intentions, claiming the nukes are for energy purposes, and the rest of the world rolls their eyes at the latest "my fish I caught was this big" story. Anyone who believes the Iranian government is gullible and every con artist in the world will be beating a path to their door to get rich quick.

Meanwhile, the smarter nations have come together into agreement on sanctions for Iran - quite the diplomatic feat for Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Time will tell how well these sanctions will work. We still may require a military action against these crazies.

As to President Obama and jobs creation for the 15 million people out of work, just how do you create jobs on a budget with a looming deficit? It really is a dilemma not faced in this country until now. I'm sure the Republicans, fools that they are, are celebrating the hoped political demise of Obama. They are foolish to pull against America in our time of great need like nothing seen since the Great Depression.

And you guessed it, support for oil drilling off America's shores has plummeted in response to the BP oil spill mess. Support might have remained constant or only dipped if BP had been truthful in all their statements. But no, BP just had to lie and keep the lies coming at a rapid pace. Americans are disgusted with the oil industry's cavalier attitude toward our wallets and our environment and our economy.

And, of course, the darlings of the oil industry are their political puppets they own lock, stock and barrel: the Republicans. Those crooked Republicans continue to block the lifting of the cap for British Petroleum's financial responsibility to the American taxpayers over this oil spill mess in the Gulf of Mexico. As usual, Big Business is too cheap to pay what they owe, whether for taxes - throwing that burden onto the middle class to pay for them, profiting by the billions of dollars in exchange for a few hundred or thousands jobs - or Big Business is too cheap to pay for their problems when they mess up on a gargantuan scale like the environmental disaster unfolding in the Gulf.





This story is good for the reason it gives you a blow by blow of how the United Nations process works.

Hillary Clinton: Russia, China to back new Iran nuclear sanctions (CSMonitor)

The five permanent members of the UN Security Council favor a fourth round of sanctions over the Iran nuclear program. It's seen as a response to Monday's nuclear fuel swap deal.

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton’s surprise announcement during Senate testimony Tuesday morning – and her elaboration that both Russia and China are on board in supporting the new resolution – is seen in part as a Big Powers’ response to a deal struck with Iran Monday by Brazil and Turkey to move a portion of Iran’s enriched uranium stockpile out of the country.





This story is worth the read for the detail of how economists have looked at this problem versus how the politicians have dominated the conversation on the air waves.


In Ohio, Obama says his policies have created jobs. Is that true? (CSMonitor)


......One thing that Obama can justly claim is that he inherited a very difficult situation when he took office early in 2009. The economy had come to the brink of collapse. It wasn't just Democrats, but also economists at places like the International Monetary Fund, who were calling for large government stimulus spending.

A year later, this January, the prevailing view among 50 economists surveyed by USA Today was that the Obama stimulus succeeded in saving many jobs. Unemployment would have hit 10.8 percent without the Recovery Act, according to their median estimate. The difference would translate into another 1.2 million lost jobs, USA Today said...

Many economists support key elements of the stimulus program, such as extended unemployment insurance, tax breaks for consumers, spending on infrastructure jobs, and aid to states to prevent massive layoffs or Medicaid cuts. Even with the stimulus, state and local governments have reduced employment over the past year. Some economists say more stimulus is needed to help launch a stronger jobs recovery...





This is something you don't see covered in the news. Just how does a government create jobs for 15 million people out of work - on a budget? Quite the dilemma.


Obama's job summit challenge: creating jobs on a budget (CSMonitor)

.......Some of the participants in the forum will urge Obama and Congress not to worry so much about deficits. Rather, they will argue, the government should spend to create jobs either indirectly through tax incentives that affect private employers, or directly by government spending on roads, green energy, or community service programs.

Their reasoning: Unemployment has become much worse than the White House envisioned when it made the case early this year for a $787 stimulus program. The federal debt is a significant long-run problem, fueled more by health care programs than by temporary stimulus efforts. The Treasury's fiscal troubles could actually be made worse, they add, if policymakers fail to get the economy moving........





Is anyone surprised at this reaction to the BP oil spill?


Poll: Support for More Offshore Oil Drilling Plummets (CBS)

Forty-six percent of Americans now say they support offshore drilling - a 16 point drop from the 64 percent who backed such drilling back in July of 2008, when "drill, baby, drill" was an oft-chanted Republican campaign slogan.

Forty-one percent, meanwhile, say the costs and risks of offshore drilling are too great - up from 28 percent in the summer of 2008.

The survey suggests a correlation between opinions on increased offshore drilling and party identification. Sixty-three percent of Republicans still favor new drilling, while 29 percent say the costs and risks are too great.

By contrast, just 34 percent of Democrats back increased drilling, while 55 percent oppose it. (Independents are nearly split, with 45 percent in favor and 39 percent opposed...)





Wall St. Reform Bill Matches Obama's Blueprint (CBS)

Washington Post: Obama Nears Second Major Legislative Win as Senate Nears Passage of Financial Reform Bill

...Passage of a 1,400-page bill to overhaul the nation's financial regulations would come just two months after Obama signed a landmark health-care overhaul. But in the case of financial regulation, much more so than with health care, the Senate bill largely reflects the administration's initial blueprint, despite the fervent efforts of lobbyists and lawmakers of all stripes to alter it.

The bill would, among other things, create an independent consumer watchdog aimed at protecting borrowers from lending abuses, establish oversight of the vast derivatives market and enable the government to wind down large, failing firms...

In January, commentators also wrote off the administration's "Volcker Rule" as dead on arrival. The provision calls for curbing the activities of big Wall Street banks, including a ban on owning hedge funds. The Volcker language now seems likely to survive, and it could grow more stringent in the days ahead.

Still, uncertainties remain. Big banks continue to lobby hard to weaken the Volcker Rule. Also in flux are new rules governing the $600 trillion derivatives market, particularly a controversial provision that could force banks to spin off their derivatives operations...





GOP Blocks Oil Spill Liability Bill (CBS)

Republicans for the second time blocked legislation that would increase oil companies' liability for oil spill damages, setting off criticism from Democrats seeking to make BP pay for the disastrous oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

Sen. James Inhofe (R-Okla.) on Tuesday blocked a bill Democrats have put forward to raise the liability cap from $75 million to $10 billion. He said on the Senate floor he agrees the cap should be raised, but the Senate should "wait and see where the cap should be."

Obama to the Republicans blocking this legislation: "This maneuver threatens to leave taxpayers, rather than the oil companies, on the hook for future disasters like the BP oil spill," he said. "I urge the Senate Republicans to stop playing special interest politics and join in a bipartisan effort to protect taxpayers and demand accountability from the oil companies..."





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Scumbag Walmart Lawsuit Caught, Scumbag Goldman Sachs Email Guilty, Scumbag GOP Denies Scumbag Reform - News Headlines 26 Apr 2010

From Denny: Walmart has been successful at avoiding the inevitable for nine years. Now they are whining at getting caught for their deceiving lying ways - all the while claiming to be the pillar of the Christian community. Hyena hypocrite is more like it.



I quit purchasing from them years ago when I found out they were refusing to hire full time employees AND coaching them to get on state welfare in order to avoid paying for health insurance.



"Scumbags" is the kindest name I can think of for this company as it sucks the life out of the working poor, most notably desperate single mothers and women in general. Maybe we will get lucky and this lawsuit will finally break their monopoly in so many communities where they have run small businesses into bankruptcy and ruin.





Appeals Court Rules Walmart Sex Discrimination Case Can Go to Trial: (ABC) Walmart Fears Suit Could Cost The Chain Billions



A class action lawsuit representing more than 1 million women got the green light to proceed today against Walmart Stores Inc.



giant chain store discriminates against female employes, could cost it billions of dollars if it is upheld. The reputation of an iconic company is also on the line.



It is the largest class action suit in American history, and Walmart indicated today it may take the fight to the Supreme Court.



The 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in San Francisco ruled that the case against one of the country's largest private employers could go to trial, nine years after the suit was originally filed in 2001.



The suit, filed on behalf of six women who worked in 13 of Walmart's stores, alleges that the women employed by the company face systemic sexism -- that they're paid less than men in comparable positions, receive fewer promotions and wait longer for promotions -- according to the court documents released today...











Speaking of scumbags, these guys over on Wall Street take the prize for the cardinal sin of greed bringing personal moral decay and corruption...





Senate Panel Says Goldman Sachs 'Misled the Country,' Helped Create Housing Bubble: (ABC) Sen. Carl Levin: Goldman Sachs Helped Inject 'Toxins' Into Financial System



Wall Street powerhouse Goldman Sachs helped create a housing bubble by selling securities backed by risky subprime mortgage loans and then profited off that bubble's bursting by secretly betting against the market, a Senate investigation has found.



A day before a high-profile hearing featuring numerous Goldman Sachs officials, the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations released a flurry of excerpts from internal bank documents that the panel says show that the embattled firm misled the American public about its role in the build-up to the financial crisis in September 2008.



"The evidence shows that Goldman Sachs helped build and operate that conveyor belt that fed toxic mortgages and mortgage securities into the financial system and then made large bets against the market that it helped create -- taking the big short, and reaping the profits from it," the panel's chairman Sen. Carl Levin said at a briefing today...



















Like this was any surprise from the Republicans who are the puppet politicians of the lobbyists... And Obama keeps trying to work with these people: "Why?" It's amazing how the Republicans speak out of both sides of their mouths. One minute it's "balance the budget and financial accountability and fiscal responsibility" and the next minute it's "Let the greedy business man whores have their way with American taxpayers' wallets."





Republicans Hand Senate Financial Reform Bill Early Defeat: (ABC) Obama 'Deeply Disappointed,' That GOP Blocked Vote to Debate Financial Reform Bill



Senate Republicans blocked a key vote today that would have sent the financial reform bill to the full Senate for debate.



The most extensive new Wall Street regulation since the Great Depression is aimed at preventing another financial crisis, but failed an initial procedural vote, 57-41, three short of the 60 needed to bring the bill to the floor.



Democrats accused Republicans of siding with Wall Street banks.



Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid compared the vote with deciding "whether party unity is more important than economic security."



President Obama said he was "deeply disappointed' in the vote...











It's good to see the majority of the public have their heads screwed on straight and are demanding financial reform in America...





ABC News Poll: Two-Thirds Back Financial Reform; The Question: How Far to Go (ABC) Trust in Obama to Handle Financial Reform a Possible Caution Flag for GOP in Election Year





Two-thirds of Americans support stricter federal regulation of banks and other financial institutions, and by a double-digit margin the public trusts President Obama more than the Republicans in Congress to handle financial reform, which could be a caution flag for the GOP in an election year.



The public supports reform overall by 65-31 percent, a broad margin that's been steady since midwinter, and trusts Obama more than the Republicans to handle financial reform by 52-35 percent, a 17-point advantage for the president in this new ABC News/Washington Post poll.



Click here for a PDF with charts and questionnaire.











Here's a strange yet compelling story about not sleeping well...





Fatal Insomnia: When Sleeplessness Kills: (ABC) Rare Genetic Disease Prods Scientists to Explore Mysteries of Sleep



Most people can relate to the occasional sleepless night, but for sufferers of a rare form of insomnia, sleeplessness can be fatal.



Silvano, an Italian man who suffered from such a condition, lost the ability to sleep at age 53. Four months after checking into a sleep clinic in Bologna, Italy, in 1984, Silvano went into a coma and died. Through Silvano's case, Italian scientists discovered an extremely rare genetic disease called fatal familial insomnia, or FFI.



FFI sufferers fall into a state in which they are neither fully asleep nor awake. The inability to sleep wreaks havoc on their lives. Sleeplessness deteriorates into exhaustion, dementia and, ultimately, death. There is no cure.



For scientists, why a lack of sleep could kill you is still an unsolved mystery.



"Sleep is the most extraordinary mystery, the most elusive biological function that we have," said Daniel Max, author of "The Family That Couldn't Sleep," who has chronicled Silvano's story and family lineage. "We know very little about how we sleep. But we know even less about why we sleep..."











And here's a negative mindset or maybe a prophetic announcement for our distant future when we may finally encounter aliens for real on planet Earth... Of course, Hawking is basing his assumption guess on the fact aliens think and behave as humans. How likely is that? Either way, Hawking is always good for an interesting read.





Stephen Hawking: Alien Contact Could Be Risky: (ABC) In Discovery Documentary, British Astrophysicist Warns Alien Life Could be Hostile



Alien encounters may seem like sure-fire winners to Hollywood, but one of the world's most famous scientists thinks they may be "too risky" be be worth seeking.



The world-famous astrophysicist theorizes that alien life will not be friendly.



In a new Discovery Channel documentary, which premiered Sunday night, British astrophysicist Stephen Hawking said that communicating with aliens could be a threat to Earth.



Hawking said it is likely that alien life exists, but a visit from extraterrestrials might be similar to Christopher Columbus' arrival in the Americas.



"If aliens visit us, the outcome would be much as when Columbus landed in America, which didn't turn out well for the Native Americans," he said. "We only have to look at ourselves to see how intelligent life might develop into something we wouldn't want to meet."



In the new program, "Into the Universe with Stephen Hawking," he speculated that aliens' capabilities "would be only limited by how much power they could harness and control, and that could be far more than we might first imagine."



He said it might even be possible for aliens to harvest the energy from an entire star.



"Such advanced aliens would perhaps become nomads, looking to conquer and colonize whatever planets they can reach," Hawking said...

















And for a funny... Check out one of the videos





*** Colbert Lampoons Immigration and Pot Smokers - Roundup of Late Nite Comedy 26 Apr 2010





*** Colbert pokes jabs at the state of Arizona for passing controversial bold new immigration bill which basically legalizes the harassment of Latinos. Colbert thinks the new strategy is one to irritate and frustrate the Latino community to the point they will get fed up and leave on their own.

The Colbert Report	Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c
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*** For the full post full of laughs to get you through the work week until blissful Friday:



Colbert Lampoons Immigration and Pot Smokers - Roundup of Late Nite Comedy 26 Apr 2010

























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Prez Clinton Versus Violent Wingnuts and Blowhard Limbaugh

From Denny: With the 15th year anniversary of McVeigh's heinous crime of domestic terrorism, killing 19 children along with another another 149 adults, President Clinton is speaking out. He gave a number of interviews and the video clips here are from ABC and CNN.

Former President Clinton acknowledges he made his mistakes in office like every new President - aside from his personal life mess. By his own estimation his biggest mistake was not to institute stronger financial regulation of Wall Street. All these years later he recognizes the lack of wisdom on that decision.

However, Clinton did not back up or back down from his stance on the dangers of overheated political rhetoric and its effect upon people who are easily influenced to do violent acts. He counters blowhard conservative talk radio host Rush Limbaugh's mangled accusation that it is Clinton who "set the stage for violence" with a recent speech on the subject "doesn't make any sense." As usual, it's Limbaugh who doesn't make any sense, running his usual mouth version of the shell game, always moving the truth around so much that people get so confused they can't find it. Read that statement as Limbaugh lies: all over the place and constantly.

Clinton reflected upon the recent health care reform bill passing, saying it made him "feel like Teddy Roosevelt to Obama's FDR." Clinton being Clinton, always thinking about the issues and ever ready to offer his thoughts, he considered the issues facing the current President: Supreme Court nomination to replace retiring 89 year old Justice Stevens, the Middle East peace process and the ever worrisome midterm elections because of a restless America watching their comfortable lifestyles plummet from the rocky economy.

Clinton's' speech about the 15th anniversary of the Oklahoma City bombing was heavily criticized by Limbaugh. It's no wonder Limbaugh attacked Clinton's admonitions because it is Limbaugh who is behaving anti-American. He is working feverishly to turn American against American. Just how patriotic is that?

What did Clinton advise in that speech that set off the Republican War of Words machine? Clinton warned that "the words we use really do matter, because there's this vast echo chamber, and they go across space and they fall on the serious and delirious alike. They fall on the connected and the unhinged alike." So, the inciting, violent and unhinged started howling at the top of their lungs, screaming it wasn't fair to speak against them.

Clinton clarified his statements yet again to the reading and politically hearing challenged, "The only point I tried to make was that we ought to have a lot of political dissent -- a lot of political argument. Nobody is right all the time. But we also have to take responsibility for the possible consequences of what we say."

He is worried about the constantly increasing death threats against too many member of Congress and President Obama. Clinton is concerned "about more careless language ... some of which we've seen against the Republican governor in New Jersey, Gov. Christie." Talk about depraved and alarming, there is a teacher in New Jersey, writing in a memo, who thought it was funny to joke about Gov. Christie dying. These are the kind of no account jerks you want teaching your kids in public or private schools? It's no wonder we have such a toxic political atmosphere in America.

Clinton believes "we all have to be careful. We ought to remember that after Oklahoma City we learned something about the difference in disagreement and demonization."

Another revelation from Clinton about the financial sector is how badly he was advised by Treasury secretaries Robert Rubin and Larry Summers. Clinton laments he ever listened to them. They actually told him to not regulate derivatives, basically a fast and loose gambler's market of supposedly complex financial instruments. Read that as Wall Street found an easy way to steal and do it legally, without accountability, regulation restraints or retribution.

"On derivatives, yeah, I think they were wrong and I think I was wrong to take [their advice]," Clinton said, "because the argument on derivatives was that these things are expensive and sophisticated and only a handful of investors will buy them, and they don't need any extra protection and any extra transparency. The money they're putting up guarantees them transparency.

"The flaw in that argument," Clinton added, "was that first of all sometimes people with a lot of money make stupid decisions and make it without transparency."

Clinton also acknowledges his thinking was wrong about how the economy would be affected if the derivative market collapsed.

"The most important flaw," he said, "was even if less than 1 percent of the total investment community is involved in derivative exchanges, so much money was involved that if they went bad, they could affect 100 percent of the investments, and indeed 100 percent of the citizens in countries, not investors. And I was wrong about that."

In retrospect, Clinton would have liked to at least try to regulate derivatives during his tenure. As to his success at taming the financial sector in this area, he doubts it would ever have become law since the Republicans had a stranglehold on Congress.

"Now, I think if I had tried to regulate them, because the Republicans were the majority in the Congress, they would have stopped it," he said. "But I wish I should have been caught trying. I mean, that was a mistake I made."













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