New home sales unexpectedly rose 9.6% in June month-over-month (m/m) to an annual rate of 433,000 units, much better than the 1.6% gain expected by economists, and May and April sales were revised higher, up 9.1% and 4.9% respectively. The median price of a new home fell 12.0% year-over-year (y/y), to $210,100. Inventory of new homes for sale continued to fall in June, to 271,000 units, the fewest since March 1993 according to Bloomberg, and combined with the jump in the pace of sales during the month, it represented 7.5 months of supply at the current sales rate, down from the peak of 12 months, but still elevated from the seven months of supply that is usually consistent with a stabilization in prices.
New home sales have struggled to compete with the discounts afforded by foreclosures of existing homes, and the market share of new homes has been running at 7% in 2009, off the high of 16% during the bubble. In response, homebuilders significantly cut back on new housing starts, allowing inventory levels of new homes to fall, and have been adjusting their models to fit changing consumer spending behaviors and credit conditions that have a bias toward smaller and more affordable homes. New single-family housing starts have been on the rise since February to meet demand driven by the $8,000 tax incentive, which ends November 30. Improving data on the housing market has been bullish for investor sentiment, but traders are uneasy about the sustainability of increases after the stimulus is removed.
[from Schwab Alerts]
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Ted Kennedy
BOSTON - Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, the liberal lion of the Senate and haunted bearer of the Camelot torch after two of his brothers fell to assassins' bullets, has died at his home in Hyannis Port after battling a brain tumor. He was 77.
For nearly a half-century in the Senate, Kennedy was a steadfast champion of the working class and the poor, a powerful voice on health care, civil rights, and war and peace. To the American public, though, he was best known as the last surviving son of America's most glamorous political family, the eulogist of a clan shattered again and again by tragedy.
***
In the days since Ted Kennedy’s death, the news programs have shown and re-shown the unforgettable ending of his 1980 Democratic convention speech — the passage from Tennyson and the beautiful final lines: “The work goes on, the cause endures, the hope still lives, and the dream shall never die.”
But if you go back earlier into the heart of that speech, you see how bold Kennedy’s agenda really was. His central argument was for a policy of full employment. Government should provide a job for every able-bodied American.
His next big goal was what he called “reindustrialization.” The computer revolution was just getting under way, but Kennedy called on government to restore the industrial might of America’s cities.
The third big goal was national health insurance. “Let us insist on real control over what doctors and hospitals can charge,” Kennedy cried.
The speech was radical, and he could have gone back to the Senate, content to luxuriate in his own boldness. He could have excoriated his opponents for their villainy and given speeches about dreams that would never come true.
But Kennedy became something else. He became a compromiser. He became an incrementalist.
Those words have negative connotations. But they shouldn’t. Kennedy never abandoned his ambitious ideals, but his ability to forge compromises and champion gradual, incremental change created the legacy everybody is celebrating today: community health centers, the National Cancer Institute, the Americans With Disabilities Act, the Meals on Wheels program, the renewal of the Voting Rights Act and the No Child Left Behind Act.
For nearly a half-century in the Senate, Kennedy was a steadfast champion of the working class and the poor, a powerful voice on health care, civil rights, and war and peace. To the American public, though, he was best known as the last surviving son of America's most glamorous political family, the eulogist of a clan shattered again and again by tragedy.
***
In the days since Ted Kennedy’s death, the news programs have shown and re-shown the unforgettable ending of his 1980 Democratic convention speech — the passage from Tennyson and the beautiful final lines: “The work goes on, the cause endures, the hope still lives, and the dream shall never die.”
But if you go back earlier into the heart of that speech, you see how bold Kennedy’s agenda really was. His central argument was for a policy of full employment. Government should provide a job for every able-bodied American.
His next big goal was what he called “reindustrialization.” The computer revolution was just getting under way, but Kennedy called on government to restore the industrial might of America’s cities.
The third big goal was national health insurance. “Let us insist on real control over what doctors and hospitals can charge,” Kennedy cried.
The speech was radical, and he could have gone back to the Senate, content to luxuriate in his own boldness. He could have excoriated his opponents for their villainy and given speeches about dreams that would never come true.
But Kennedy became something else. He became a compromiser. He became an incrementalist.
Those words have negative connotations. But they shouldn’t. Kennedy never abandoned his ambitious ideals, but his ability to forge compromises and champion gradual, incremental change created the legacy everybody is celebrating today: community health centers, the National Cancer Institute, the Americans With Disabilities Act, the Meals on Wheels program, the renewal of the Voting Rights Act and the No Child Left Behind Act.
HMSA on health care reform
We are approaching a crisis point. Unsustainable increases in health care costs threaten the financial security of families and hinder the economic recovery of our nation.
The sheer number and complexity of interacting parts of health care reform make it challenging to answer the question, "Where does the Hawaii Medical Service Association stand in all of this"?
We stand on the fundamentals.
HMSA supports access to quality, affordable health care. We support an active and innovative private sector role in health care. We support choice in physicians and health plans. We support government programs that provide access to health care for the most vulnerable in our society. We support accountability and transparency in all sectors of the health care industry. We support outcome-based medicine and best practices in health care. We support consumer empowerment and individual responsibility for health behaviors. And, we support an economically sustainable health care system.
As Hawaii's largest provider of health care coverage, HMSA supports effective and affordable reform. Controlling costs and providing access to quality care have always been our goals, so today's discussions about health care reform are in line with our philosophy and efforts throughout the 70-plus years we've served the people of Hawaii. True reform will happen only with the involvement of everyone in the health care system.
As individuals, we need to take responsibility for our health -- eating well, exercising and avoiding risky behaviors.
Health care providers need to make sure they're offering the right care at the right time. That doesn't mean more procedures or tests that simply drive up costs. It means influencing patients to take an active role in managing their health and the delivery of care with measurable results demonstrating that patients are healthier.
The government needs to ensure that it pays its fair share. On average, a family of four with a private health plan pays an additional $1,800 a year to subsidize what Medicare and Medicaid pay physicians and hospitals. These government programs need to pay for the true cost of care.
The sheer number and complexity of interacting parts of health care reform make it challenging to answer the question, "Where does the Hawaii Medical Service Association stand in all of this"?
We stand on the fundamentals.
HMSA supports access to quality, affordable health care. We support an active and innovative private sector role in health care. We support choice in physicians and health plans. We support government programs that provide access to health care for the most vulnerable in our society. We support accountability and transparency in all sectors of the health care industry. We support outcome-based medicine and best practices in health care. We support consumer empowerment and individual responsibility for health behaviors. And, we support an economically sustainable health care system.
As Hawaii's largest provider of health care coverage, HMSA supports effective and affordable reform. Controlling costs and providing access to quality care have always been our goals, so today's discussions about health care reform are in line with our philosophy and efforts throughout the 70-plus years we've served the people of Hawaii. True reform will happen only with the involvement of everyone in the health care system.
As individuals, we need to take responsibility for our health -- eating well, exercising and avoiding risky behaviors.
Health care providers need to make sure they're offering the right care at the right time. That doesn't mean more procedures or tests that simply drive up costs. It means influencing patients to take an active role in managing their health and the delivery of care with measurable results demonstrating that patients are healthier.
The government needs to ensure that it pays its fair share. On average, a family of four with a private health plan pays an additional $1,800 a year to subsidize what Medicare and Medicaid pay physicians and hospitals. These government programs need to pay for the true cost of care.
AARP on Health Care reform
As your recent editorial ("End Medicare Myths," Aug. 12) makes clear, fixing what's wrong with health care is far too important to be derailed by scare tactics perpetuated by special interest groups who will benefit from the status quo.
What is the status quo? Insurance companies denying coverage to people with pre-existing conditions and charging people unaffordable premiums because of their age. Layoffs leaving people without health insurance. More and more seniors who can't afford the medications they need to stay healthy and can't find a doctor willing to take Medicare patients.
You may have heard the myth that health care reform means socialized medicine. Not true. Health care reform will preserve the employer-based health care system, meaning an estimated 175 million Americans will continue to get their coverage through their employers. Every proposal that Congress is considering would allow people to choose their own doctors and hospitals.
Or how about the scare tactic that health care reform will allow the government to make end-of-life decisions for you? Absolutely false. Reform will not give the government the power to make end-of-life decisions for anyone, regardless of age. Those decisions will be made by individuals with their families and their doctors. No one, including the government or your insurance company, will be given power to make end-of-life decisions for you.
People need to hear the good things that will happen when we pass real reform. AARP is calling on Congress to guarantee that all Americans have a choice of dependable, affordable health insurance plans and preserve your choice of doctors who can work with you to make the best possible health care decisions for you and your family.
We believe health care reform must fix what's wrong and preserve what's right. Reform must strengthen and improve Medicare, protect people's choice of doctor and insurance plans, and guarantee dependable, affordable coverage.
AARP believes health care is not a Democratic or Republican issue. It's not about political gamesmanship. It's about people's lives.
* * *
The AARP, a national association of people 50 and older, supports the health care overhaul. Here is its take on two key issues.
Myth: Health care reform means rationed care.
Myth: Health care reform means the government can make life-and-death decisions for you.
* * *
Health Care Reform Taking Shape
* * *
A. Barry Rand, AARP CEO on Where We Stand: Health Reform Now
What is the status quo? Insurance companies denying coverage to people with pre-existing conditions and charging people unaffordable premiums because of their age. Layoffs leaving people without health insurance. More and more seniors who can't afford the medications they need to stay healthy and can't find a doctor willing to take Medicare patients.
You may have heard the myth that health care reform means socialized medicine. Not true. Health care reform will preserve the employer-based health care system, meaning an estimated 175 million Americans will continue to get their coverage through their employers. Every proposal that Congress is considering would allow people to choose their own doctors and hospitals.
Or how about the scare tactic that health care reform will allow the government to make end-of-life decisions for you? Absolutely false. Reform will not give the government the power to make end-of-life decisions for anyone, regardless of age. Those decisions will be made by individuals with their families and their doctors. No one, including the government or your insurance company, will be given power to make end-of-life decisions for you.
People need to hear the good things that will happen when we pass real reform. AARP is calling on Congress to guarantee that all Americans have a choice of dependable, affordable health insurance plans and preserve your choice of doctors who can work with you to make the best possible health care decisions for you and your family.
We believe health care reform must fix what's wrong and preserve what's right. Reform must strengthen and improve Medicare, protect people's choice of doctor and insurance plans, and guarantee dependable, affordable coverage.
AARP believes health care is not a Democratic or Republican issue. It's not about political gamesmanship. It's about people's lives.
* * *
The AARP, a national association of people 50 and older, supports the health care overhaul. Here is its take on two key issues.
Myth: Health care reform means rationed care.
Myth: Health care reform means the government can make life-and-death decisions for you.
* * *
Health Care Reform Taking Shape
* * *
A. Barry Rand, AARP CEO on Where We Stand: Health Reform Now
Monday, August 24, 2009
Morningstar on Health Care Reform
The U.S. pays significantly more for health-care products and services than comparable developed countries, yet the quality of service and patient outcomes hardly reflect the drastic difference in pricing. The U.S. trails the developed world in life span, infant mortality, and medical mishaps--a tough pill to swallow for a country that spends more than 16% of its gross domestic product on health care. The problem looks even worse when we consider that 46 million U.S. residents lack health insurance altogether, whether because of their uninsurable status or unaffordable premiums.
The million-dollar question is how do we repair a clearly cracked system? The seemingly best, albeit completely unattainable, solution would be to blow up the current health-delivery system in its entirety and start from scratch, as been done in other modern nations, notably Taiwan. A system with one main payer (the federal government) would have unquestionable bargaining power and would no doubt be capable of slowing health-care cost inflation, via rationing of services to curb unnecessary and often abusive use and price controls.
However, the complexity of the existing U.S. system, massive obligations associated with the present entitlement programs, and, most importantly, overwhelming political opposition would hinder any attempts to drastically overhaul our current payer-provider framework. That is why we're not seeing any attempts to introduce a single-payer system similar to the one in the U.K. or Canada in a form of a government mandate, despite the Democrats filibuster-proof majority in both chambers of the Congress. Instead, greater government involvement with health care is being introduced through a rollout of a public plan that would--in theory--rationally compete with existing insurance plans, while also extending insurance coverage universally.
Despite some potential benefits that a government plan would provide, its existence in itself is a major sticking point for a sizable group of Americans. The challenges of simply getting proposals that contain a public-plan option to the negotiating table underscore the reluctance of some Americans to fully embrace government involvement with health care. Right or wrong, the uproar over a public plan could doom broad health-care reform in its entirety, and leave us with the unsustainable status quo.
It is, however, possible that an amicable compromise could still be achieved. There are a number of areas where the support for reform is strong, such as the proliferation of information technology to reduce administrative waste, disease prevention, and universal coverage, among others. The desire to reduce medical cost inflation is also widespread, which may yield a greater willingness by some industry participants to proactively seek ways to reduce overall costs. A recent agreement between the pharmaceutical industry and government to save federal programs an estimated $80 billion in drug costs over the next 10 years could be a harbinger of future price concessions offered by various industry players.
The million-dollar question is how do we repair a clearly cracked system? The seemingly best, albeit completely unattainable, solution would be to blow up the current health-delivery system in its entirety and start from scratch, as been done in other modern nations, notably Taiwan. A system with one main payer (the federal government) would have unquestionable bargaining power and would no doubt be capable of slowing health-care cost inflation, via rationing of services to curb unnecessary and often abusive use and price controls.
However, the complexity of the existing U.S. system, massive obligations associated with the present entitlement programs, and, most importantly, overwhelming political opposition would hinder any attempts to drastically overhaul our current payer-provider framework. That is why we're not seeing any attempts to introduce a single-payer system similar to the one in the U.K. or Canada in a form of a government mandate, despite the Democrats filibuster-proof majority in both chambers of the Congress. Instead, greater government involvement with health care is being introduced through a rollout of a public plan that would--in theory--rationally compete with existing insurance plans, while also extending insurance coverage universally.
Despite some potential benefits that a government plan would provide, its existence in itself is a major sticking point for a sizable group of Americans. The challenges of simply getting proposals that contain a public-plan option to the negotiating table underscore the reluctance of some Americans to fully embrace government involvement with health care. Right or wrong, the uproar over a public plan could doom broad health-care reform in its entirety, and leave us with the unsustainable status quo.
It is, however, possible that an amicable compromise could still be achieved. There are a number of areas where the support for reform is strong, such as the proliferation of information technology to reduce administrative waste, disease prevention, and universal coverage, among others. The desire to reduce medical cost inflation is also widespread, which may yield a greater willingness by some industry participants to proactively seek ways to reduce overall costs. A recent agreement between the pharmaceutical industry and government to save federal programs an estimated $80 billion in drug costs over the next 10 years could be a harbinger of future price concessions offered by various industry players.
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
50 | A Statehood Journey 1959-2009
A Star Bulletin special
Honolulu Advertiser: Hawai`i's 50th Anniversary of Statehood
[8/13/09] Ala Moana Center 50th anniversary
Honolulu Advertiser: Hawai`i's 50th Anniversary of Statehood
[8/13/09] Ala Moana Center 50th anniversary
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
New York Times Guide to Health Care Reform
With the debate over the future of health care now shifted from Capitol Hill to town halls, supporters and critics of the Democrats’ legislative proposals are polishing their sound bites and sharpening their attack lines.
Increasingly, the battle looks like a presidential contest, with expensive advertising campaigns and Internet-driven efforts to mobilize local support. It can be difficult to sort fact from fiction, as angry protesters denounce the legislation at raucous public forums.
Each side hopes to win ground by boiling down one of the most complex policy discussions in history into digestible nuggets. For beachside viewers who might be more interested in iced-tea service than fee-for-service, here is a guide to the main fight points.
KEEP IT OR LOSE IT?
Mr. Obama has said repeatedly, as he told the American Medical Association in June: “If you like your doctor, you will be able to keep your doctor, period. If you like your health care plan, you’ll be able to keep your health care plan, period. No one will take it away, no matter what.”
These assurances reflect an aspiration, but may not be literally true or enforceable.
SOCIALIZED MEDICINE
Or Uniquely American?
Republicans harshly criticize Democratic proposals to create a government-run insurance plan, or public option, to compete with private insurers. Republicans say the public plan would drive insurers out of business and lead to “socialized medicine” or a government takeover of health care. Democrats say they want a “uniquely American” system with public and private elements.
For now, the Republican criticism seems overblown. Major versions of the legislation all rely heavily on a continuation of private health plans, offered by employers and by insurance companies, subject to sweeping new federal regulations.
BLAMING INSURERS
Or Ensuring Blame?
Democrats have unleashed a blistering attack on private health insurers as they try to convince the vast majority of Americans who already have coverage that the current system is tilted in favor of corporate profits, not patients, and that insurers are a main obstacle to passing legislation.
Insurers say they support some of the most important Democratic proposals, including a ban on denying coverage or charging higher premiums based on pre-existing medical conditions.
The insurance industry does oppose a government-run insurance plan and could eventually mobilize against the overhaul. But insurers appear to be less of an obstacle than public apprehension over such sweeping change and skittishness among lawmakers, including centrist Democrats from Republican-leaning districts.
DEFICIT-NEUTRAL
Or Budget-Buster?
Mr. Obama has avoided dictating specific provisions of health care legislation. But he has insisted that the bill not add to the federal debt, leading Democrats to say that the overhaul will be “deficit neutral,” with the roughly $1 trillion, 10-year cost to be offset by reduced spending or new taxes.
The Congressional Budget Office has yet to issue cost estimates for the latest versions of the bill approved by three House committees. But it has warned that the legislation “would probably generate substantial increases in federal budget deficits” beyond 2019, in part because health costs are rising faster than the rate of inflation and proposed new taxes would not keep up.
Republicans use those warnings to cast doubt on the claim by Mr. Obama that the legislation will “bend the cost curve” by slowing the growth of health spending in the long term. Democrats say the overhaul will lead to savings that cannot be calculated under budgeting rules. At this point, it is difficult to know who is right.
Over the next 10 years, the budget office said, the House bill would “result in a net increase in the federal budget deficit of $239 billion,” partly because of an increase in Medicare spending to avert sharp cuts in payments to doctors scheduled to occur under existing law.
CUTTING MEDICARE
Or Preserving It?
To help finance coverage for the uninsured, Congress would squeeze huge savings out of Medicare, the program for older Americans and the disabled. These savings would pay nearly 40 percent of the bills’ cost.
The legislation would trim Medicare payments for most services, as an incentive for hospitals and other health care providers to become more efficient. The providers make a plausible case that the cutbacks could inadvertently reduce beneficiaries’ access to some types of care.
Increasingly, the battle looks like a presidential contest, with expensive advertising campaigns and Internet-driven efforts to mobilize local support. It can be difficult to sort fact from fiction, as angry protesters denounce the legislation at raucous public forums.
Each side hopes to win ground by boiling down one of the most complex policy discussions in history into digestible nuggets. For beachside viewers who might be more interested in iced-tea service than fee-for-service, here is a guide to the main fight points.
KEEP IT OR LOSE IT?
Mr. Obama has said repeatedly, as he told the American Medical Association in June: “If you like your doctor, you will be able to keep your doctor, period. If you like your health care plan, you’ll be able to keep your health care plan, period. No one will take it away, no matter what.”
These assurances reflect an aspiration, but may not be literally true or enforceable.
SOCIALIZED MEDICINE
Or Uniquely American?
Republicans harshly criticize Democratic proposals to create a government-run insurance plan, or public option, to compete with private insurers. Republicans say the public plan would drive insurers out of business and lead to “socialized medicine” or a government takeover of health care. Democrats say they want a “uniquely American” system with public and private elements.
For now, the Republican criticism seems overblown. Major versions of the legislation all rely heavily on a continuation of private health plans, offered by employers and by insurance companies, subject to sweeping new federal regulations.
BLAMING INSURERS
Or Ensuring Blame?
Democrats have unleashed a blistering attack on private health insurers as they try to convince the vast majority of Americans who already have coverage that the current system is tilted in favor of corporate profits, not patients, and that insurers are a main obstacle to passing legislation.
Insurers say they support some of the most important Democratic proposals, including a ban on denying coverage or charging higher premiums based on pre-existing medical conditions.
The insurance industry does oppose a government-run insurance plan and could eventually mobilize against the overhaul. But insurers appear to be less of an obstacle than public apprehension over such sweeping change and skittishness among lawmakers, including centrist Democrats from Republican-leaning districts.
DEFICIT-NEUTRAL
Or Budget-Buster?
Mr. Obama has avoided dictating specific provisions of health care legislation. But he has insisted that the bill not add to the federal debt, leading Democrats to say that the overhaul will be “deficit neutral,” with the roughly $1 trillion, 10-year cost to be offset by reduced spending or new taxes.
The Congressional Budget Office has yet to issue cost estimates for the latest versions of the bill approved by three House committees. But it has warned that the legislation “would probably generate substantial increases in federal budget deficits” beyond 2019, in part because health costs are rising faster than the rate of inflation and proposed new taxes would not keep up.
Republicans use those warnings to cast doubt on the claim by Mr. Obama that the legislation will “bend the cost curve” by slowing the growth of health spending in the long term. Democrats say the overhaul will lead to savings that cannot be calculated under budgeting rules. At this point, it is difficult to know who is right.
Over the next 10 years, the budget office said, the House bill would “result in a net increase in the federal budget deficit of $239 billion,” partly because of an increase in Medicare spending to avert sharp cuts in payments to doctors scheduled to occur under existing law.
CUTTING MEDICARE
Or Preserving It?
To help finance coverage for the uninsured, Congress would squeeze huge savings out of Medicare, the program for older Americans and the disabled. These savings would pay nearly 40 percent of the bills’ cost.
The legislation would trim Medicare payments for most services, as an incentive for hospitals and other health care providers to become more efficient. The providers make a plausible case that the cutbacks could inadvertently reduce beneficiaries’ access to some types of care.
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Health Care unrest
The bitter divisions over an overhaul of the health care system have exploded at town-hall-style meetings over the last few days as members of Congress have been shouted down, hanged in effigy and taunted by crowds. In several cities, noisy demonstrations have led to fistfights, arrests and hospitalizations.
Democrats have said the protesters are being organized by conservative lobbying groups like FreedomWorks. Republicans respond that the protests are an organic response to the Obama administration’s health care restructuring proposals.
There is no dispute, however, that most of the shouting and mocking is from opponents of those plans. Many of those opponents have been encouraged to attend by conservative commentators and Web sites.
“Become a part of the mob!” said a banner posted Friday on the Web site of the talk show host Sean Hannity. “Attend an Obama Care Townhall near you!” The exhortations do not advocate violence, but some urge opponents to be disruptive.
“Pack the hall,” said a strategy memo circulated by the Web site Tea Party Patriots that instructed, “Yell out and challenge the Rep’s statements early.”
In response, liberal groups and the White House have also started sending supporters instructions for countering what they say are the organized disruptions.
The tenor of some of the debates has become extreme. Ms. Pelosi has accused people at recent protests of carrying signs associating the Democratic plan with Nazi swastikas and SS symbols, and some photographs showing such signs have been posted on the Web.
On Thursday, the talk show host Rush Limbaugh said the administration’s health care logo was itself similar to a Nazi symbol.
One of the week’s most raucous encounters occurred Thursday in Tampa, Fla., where roughly 1,500 people attended a forum held by Democratic lawmakers, including Representative Kathy Castor. When the auditorium at the Children’s Board of Hillsborough County reached capacity and organizers had to close the doors, the scene descended into violence.
As Ms. Castor began to speak, scuffles broke out as people tried to push their way in. Parts of her remarks were drowned out by chants of “read the bill, read the bill” and “tyranny,” as a video recording of the meeting showed. Outside the meeting, there were competing chants of “Yes we can” and “Just say no.”
Some of the protesters told local reporters they had been urged to come by a local activist group promoted by the conservative radio and television host Glenn Beck. Others said they had received e-mail messages from the Hillsborough County Republican Party that urged people to speak out against the plan and offered talking points.
At an appearance at a grocery store in Austin, Tex., on Aug. 1, Representative Lloyd Doggett, a Democrat, was drowned out as he tried to speak on health care change. One opponent had a mock tombstone with Mr. Doggett’s name on it.
Last week, a protester hanged an effigy of Representative Frank Kratovil Jr., Democrat of Maryland, at a rally opposing health care change. This week, Representative Brad Miller, Democrat of North Carolina, said he had received a death threat about his support.
* * *
ANCHORAGE, Alaska - Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin called President Barack Obama's health plan "downright evil" Friday in her first online comments since leaving office, saying in a Facebook posting that he would create a "death panel" that would deny care to the neediest Americans.
"The America I know and love is not one in which my parents or my baby with Down Syndrome will have to stand in front of Obama's 'death panel' so his bureaucrats can decide, based on a subjective judgment of their 'level of productivity in society,' whether they are worthy of health care," the former Republican vice presidential candidate wrote.
"Such a system is downright evil," Palin wrote on her page, which has nearly 700,000 supporters. She encouraged her supporters to be engaged in the debate.
The claim that the Democratic health care bills would encourage euthanasia has been circulating on the Internet for weeks and has been echoed by some Republican leaders. Democrats from Obama on down have dismissed it as a distortion. The nonpartisan group FactCheck.org, a project of the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania says the claim is false.
Democrats have said the protesters are being organized by conservative lobbying groups like FreedomWorks. Republicans respond that the protests are an organic response to the Obama administration’s health care restructuring proposals.
There is no dispute, however, that most of the shouting and mocking is from opponents of those plans. Many of those opponents have been encouraged to attend by conservative commentators and Web sites.
“Become a part of the mob!” said a banner posted Friday on the Web site of the talk show host Sean Hannity. “Attend an Obama Care Townhall near you!” The exhortations do not advocate violence, but some urge opponents to be disruptive.
“Pack the hall,” said a strategy memo circulated by the Web site Tea Party Patriots that instructed, “Yell out and challenge the Rep’s statements early.”
In response, liberal groups and the White House have also started sending supporters instructions for countering what they say are the organized disruptions.
The tenor of some of the debates has become extreme. Ms. Pelosi has accused people at recent protests of carrying signs associating the Democratic plan with Nazi swastikas and SS symbols, and some photographs showing such signs have been posted on the Web.
On Thursday, the talk show host Rush Limbaugh said the administration’s health care logo was itself similar to a Nazi symbol.
One of the week’s most raucous encounters occurred Thursday in Tampa, Fla., where roughly 1,500 people attended a forum held by Democratic lawmakers, including Representative Kathy Castor. When the auditorium at the Children’s Board of Hillsborough County reached capacity and organizers had to close the doors, the scene descended into violence.
As Ms. Castor began to speak, scuffles broke out as people tried to push their way in. Parts of her remarks were drowned out by chants of “read the bill, read the bill” and “tyranny,” as a video recording of the meeting showed. Outside the meeting, there were competing chants of “Yes we can” and “Just say no.”
Some of the protesters told local reporters they had been urged to come by a local activist group promoted by the conservative radio and television host Glenn Beck. Others said they had received e-mail messages from the Hillsborough County Republican Party that urged people to speak out against the plan and offered talking points.
At an appearance at a grocery store in Austin, Tex., on Aug. 1, Representative Lloyd Doggett, a Democrat, was drowned out as he tried to speak on health care change. One opponent had a mock tombstone with Mr. Doggett’s name on it.
Last week, a protester hanged an effigy of Representative Frank Kratovil Jr., Democrat of Maryland, at a rally opposing health care change. This week, Representative Brad Miller, Democrat of North Carolina, said he had received a death threat about his support.
* * *
ANCHORAGE, Alaska - Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin called President Barack Obama's health plan "downright evil" Friday in her first online comments since leaving office, saying in a Facebook posting that he would create a "death panel" that would deny care to the neediest Americans.
"The America I know and love is not one in which my parents or my baby with Down Syndrome will have to stand in front of Obama's 'death panel' so his bureaucrats can decide, based on a subjective judgment of their 'level of productivity in society,' whether they are worthy of health care," the former Republican vice presidential candidate wrote.
"Such a system is downright evil," Palin wrote on her page, which has nearly 700,000 supporters. She encouraged her supporters to be engaged in the debate.
The claim that the Democratic health care bills would encourage euthanasia has been circulating on the Internet for weeks and has been echoed by some Republican leaders. Democrats from Obama on down have dismissed it as a distortion. The nonpartisan group FactCheck.org, a project of the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania says the claim is false.
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Outdoor Circle puts its foot down
“It’s something that would detract from Hawaii’s unique beauty and lower the quality of life for our residents,” the civic-minded citizens of the Outdoor Circle announced recently.
Oh my goodness, what could be so hideous? We should all heed such a dire warning, shouldn’t we?
What scourge is among us that places our home and lives in jeopardy?
What could be responsible for endangering all that we hold dear?
I’ll tell you what.
The Wienermobile. That lovable, fun, wholesome icon of childhood and good times, the Oscar Mayer Wienermobile, is the great threat to our community.
Bob Loy of the Outdoor Circle was quoted in the Honolulu Star-Bulletin to say that the presence of the Wienermobile in our town is, and I quote: “It’s something that would detract from Hawaii’s beauty and lower the quality of life of our residents.”
Wow, Bob. Thanks for sounding the alarm. Because, who knew?
Oh my goodness, what could be so hideous? We should all heed such a dire warning, shouldn’t we?
What scourge is among us that places our home and lives in jeopardy?
What could be responsible for endangering all that we hold dear?
I’ll tell you what.
The Wienermobile. That lovable, fun, wholesome icon of childhood and good times, the Oscar Mayer Wienermobile, is the great threat to our community.
Bob Loy of the Outdoor Circle was quoted in the Honolulu Star-Bulletin to say that the presence of the Wienermobile in our town is, and I quote: “It’s something that would detract from Hawaii’s beauty and lower the quality of life of our residents.”
Wow, Bob. Thanks for sounding the alarm. Because, who knew?
saved by his shorts
Gary Fernandez of Kailua was alone on his 17-foot Boston Whaler early Saturday afternoon when a rogue wave struck the boat, knocking him into the ocean miles out of Kaneohe Bay.
The boat continued on as he treaded water.
For the next six hours, the 49-year-old retired Navy chief petty officer used his military training and prayer to survive the long swim back to Kaneohe.
"I'm not going to die out here," he told himself.
Fernandez, who served as a Navy search and rescue instructor for three years, said because of his training he knew how to turn his board shorts into a flotation device. After he fell into the water, he took off the shorts, scooped air into them and scrunched the ends tightly with his hands to create an air bubble the size of an ipu, or gourd drum.
He described the board shorts as his lifesaver. "I knew if I lost this, I would die," he said yesterday as he held the the light-blue plaid Quiksilver board shorts in his hands.
The boat continued on as he treaded water.
For the next six hours, the 49-year-old retired Navy chief petty officer used his military training and prayer to survive the long swim back to Kaneohe.
"I'm not going to die out here," he told himself.
Fernandez, who served as a Navy search and rescue instructor for three years, said because of his training he knew how to turn his board shorts into a flotation device. After he fell into the water, he took off the shorts, scooped air into them and scrunched the ends tightly with his hands to create an air bubble the size of an ipu, or gourd drum.
He described the board shorts as his lifesaver. "I knew if I lost this, I would die," he said yesterday as he held the the light-blue plaid Quiksilver board shorts in his hands.
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
the Whole Foods health care plan
No, it's not buy all your food from Whole Foods and you won't get sick. ... Or maybe it is..
* * *
While we clearly need health-care reform, the last thing our country needs is a massive new health-care entitlement that will create hundreds of billions of dollars of new unfunded deficits and move us much closer to a government takeover of our health-care system. Instead, we should be trying to achieve reforms by moving in the opposite direction—toward less government control and more individual empowerment. Here are eight reforms that would greatly lower the cost of health care for everyone:
-- John Mackey co-founder and CEO of Whole Foods Market Inc
* * *
While we clearly need health-care reform, the last thing our country needs is a massive new health-care entitlement that will create hundreds of billions of dollars of new unfunded deficits and move us much closer to a government takeover of our health-care system. Instead, we should be trying to achieve reforms by moving in the opposite direction—toward less government control and more individual empowerment. Here are eight reforms that would greatly lower the cost of health care for everyone:
-- John Mackey co-founder and CEO of Whole Foods Market Inc
Wednesday, August 05, 2009
Clinton frees the Americans
Former President Bill Clinton left North Korea on Wednesday morning after a dramatic 20-hour visit, in which he won the freedom of two American journalists, opened a diplomatic channel to North Korea’s reclusive government and dined with the North’s ailing leader, Kim Jong-il.
Mr. Clinton departed from Pyongyang, the capital, around 8:30 a.m. local time, along with the journalists, Laura Ling, 32, and Euna Lee, 36, on a private jet bound for Los Angeles, according to a statement from the former president’s office.
The North Korean government, which in June sentenced the women to 12 years of hard labor for illegally entering North Korean territory, announced hours earlier that it had pardoned the women after Mr. Clinton apologized to Mr. Kim for their actions, according to the North Korean state media.
President Obama contacted the families of the women on Tuesday evening, according to administration officials, but the White House said it would withhold public comment until the former president landed on American soil.
Mr. Clinton’s mission to Pyongyang was the most visible by an American in nearly a decade. It came at a time when the United States’ relationship with North Korea had become especially chilled, after North Korea’s test of its second nuclear device in May and a series of missile launchings.
It ended a harrowing ordeal for the two women, who were stopped on March 17 by soldiers near North Korea’s border with China while researching a report about women and human trafficking. They faced years of imprisonment in the gulaglike confines of a North Korean prison camp.
Mr. Clinton departed from Pyongyang, the capital, around 8:30 a.m. local time, along with the journalists, Laura Ling, 32, and Euna Lee, 36, on a private jet bound for Los Angeles, according to a statement from the former president’s office.
The North Korean government, which in June sentenced the women to 12 years of hard labor for illegally entering North Korean territory, announced hours earlier that it had pardoned the women after Mr. Clinton apologized to Mr. Kim for their actions, according to the North Korean state media.
President Obama contacted the families of the women on Tuesday evening, according to administration officials, but the White House said it would withhold public comment until the former president landed on American soil.
Mr. Clinton’s mission to Pyongyang was the most visible by an American in nearly a decade. It came at a time when the United States’ relationship with North Korea had become especially chilled, after North Korea’s test of its second nuclear device in May and a series of missile launchings.
It ended a harrowing ordeal for the two women, who were stopped on March 17 by soldiers near North Korea’s border with China while researching a report about women and human trafficking. They faced years of imprisonment in the gulaglike confines of a North Korean prison camp.
Friday, July 31, 2009
waiting for health care
President Lyndon Johnson signed the Medicare law on July 30, 1965, and 11 months later seniors were receiving coverage. But if President Barack Obama gets to sign a health care overhaul this fall, the uninsured won't be covered until 2013 — after the next presidential election.
In fact, a timeline of the 1,000-page health care bill crafted by House Democrats shows it would take the better part of a decade — from 2010-2018 — to get all the components of the far-reaching proposal up and running. The moving parts include a national insurance marketplace overseen by a brand new federal bureaucracy — the Health Choices Administration.
Medicare was big. This could be bigger. If a bill passes, Americans probably will be discovering — and debating — its effects for years.
In fact, a timeline of the 1,000-page health care bill crafted by House Democrats shows it would take the better part of a decade — from 2010-2018 — to get all the components of the far-reaching proposal up and running. The moving parts include a national insurance marketplace overseen by a brand new federal bureaucracy — the Health Choices Administration.
Medicare was big. This could be bigger. If a bill passes, Americans probably will be discovering — and debating — its effects for years.
Monday, July 27, 2009
Federal deficit tops $1 trillion
WASHINGTON — The federal deficit has topped $1 trillion for the first time ever and could grow to nearly $2 trillion by this fall, intensifying fears about higher interest rates, inflation and the strength of the dollar.
The deficit has been widened by the huge sum the government has spent to ease the recession, combined with a sharp decline in tax revenues. The cost of wars in Iraq and Afghanistan also is a major factor.
The deficit has been widened by the huge sum the government has spent to ease the recession, combined with a sharp decline in tax revenues. The cost of wars in Iraq and Afghanistan also is a major factor.
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Hair Salon Angels
It looked like a chase scene from an action film: An Aiea hair salon owner and her "girls" chased down two vehicle-theft suspects Tuesday, recovering a stolen minivan and netting two arrests.
Shortly after noon, Desire Salon & Spa owner Tara Madijanon pulled up in her minivan to drop off a few things at her salon at 98-064 Kamehameha Highway.
Madijanon asked skin-care specialist Jennie Honda to keep an eye on the van, which was left running. Honda, 29, noticed two men seated in the van and went out to confront them.
When the van sped off, Madijanon kicked off her high heels and ran barefoot after it, catching up and clinging to it by the rear windshield wiper blade.
The men stopped at a red light and jumped the curb onto the sidewalk. That's when Madijanon flung open the passenger door.
"I just ripped his arm ... pushed him and flung him out," she said yesterday.
The men fled, but her 44-year-old business partner and cosmetologist Vera Close outran them in her bare feet and chased them into some apartment complexes. She threw a full soda bottle at one of them, striking him in the back of the head.
Police arrested two men in the area of Kanuku Place and Moanalua Loop, where they ran onto the roof of a building and slid down a pillar, police said.
Shortly after noon, Desire Salon & Spa owner Tara Madijanon pulled up in her minivan to drop off a few things at her salon at 98-064 Kamehameha Highway.
Madijanon asked skin-care specialist Jennie Honda to keep an eye on the van, which was left running. Honda, 29, noticed two men seated in the van and went out to confront them.
When the van sped off, Madijanon kicked off her high heels and ran barefoot after it, catching up and clinging to it by the rear windshield wiper blade.
The men stopped at a red light and jumped the curb onto the sidewalk. That's when Madijanon flung open the passenger door.
"I just ripped his arm ... pushed him and flung him out," she said yesterday.
The men fled, but her 44-year-old business partner and cosmetologist Vera Close outran them in her bare feet and chased them into some apartment complexes. She threw a full soda bottle at one of them, striking him in the back of the head.
Police arrested two men in the area of Kanuku Place and Moanalua Loop, where they ran onto the roof of a building and slid down a pillar, police said.
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Robert McNamara
Robert S. McNamara, the brainy Pentagon chief who directed the escalation of the Vietnam War despite private doubts the war was winnable or worth fighting, died Monday at 93.
McNamara revealed his misgivings three decades after the American defeat that some called "McNamara's war."
"We of the Kennedy and Johnson administrations acted according to what we thought were the principles and traditions of our country. But we were wrong. We were terribly wrong," McNamara told The Associated Press in 1995, the year his best-selling memoir appeared.
Closely identified with the war's early years, McNamara was a forceful public optimist. He predicted that American intervention would enable the South Vietnamese, despite internal feuds, to stand by themselves "by the end of 1965." The war ground on until 1975, with more than 58,000 U.S. deaths.
By the end of his Pentagon tenure, McNamara had come to doubt the value of widespread U.S. bombing, and he was fighting with his generals. President Lyndon Johnson lost faith or patience in him; McNamara would later write that he didn't know if he quit or was fired.
Reticent, McNamara long resisted offers to give a detailed accounting of his role in Vietnam. His son, who had protested the war his father helped to run, once said it was not within McNamara's "scope" to be reflective about the war.
McNamara's eventual mea culpa won him admiration from some former opponents of the war. Others said it was not enough, and three decades too late.
McNamara's book, "In Retrospect: The Tragedy and Lessons of Vietnam," appeared in 1995. McNamara disclosed that by 1967 he had deep misgivings about Vietnam — by then he had lost faith in America's capacity to prevail over guerrillas who had driven the French from the same jungle countryside.
Despite those doubts, he had continued to express public confidence that the application of enough American firepower would cause the Communists to make peace. In that period, the number of U.S. casualties — dead, missing and wounded — went from 7,466 to over 100,000.
McNamara wrote later that he and others had not asked five basic questions: "Was it true that the fall of South Vietnam would trigger the fall of all Southeast Asia? Would that constitute a grave threat to the West's security? What kind of war — conventional or guerrilla — might develop? Could the U.S. win with its troops fighting alongside the South Vietnamese? Should the U.S. not know the answers to all these questions before deciding whether to commit troops?"
He discussed similar themes in the 2003 documentary "The Fog of War: Eleven Lessons from the Life of Robert S. McNamara." With the U.S. in the first year of the war in Iraq, it became a popular and timely art-house attraction and won the Oscar for best documentary feature.
McNamara revealed his misgivings three decades after the American defeat that some called "McNamara's war."
"We of the Kennedy and Johnson administrations acted according to what we thought were the principles and traditions of our country. But we were wrong. We were terribly wrong," McNamara told The Associated Press in 1995, the year his best-selling memoir appeared.
Closely identified with the war's early years, McNamara was a forceful public optimist. He predicted that American intervention would enable the South Vietnamese, despite internal feuds, to stand by themselves "by the end of 1965." The war ground on until 1975, with more than 58,000 U.S. deaths.
By the end of his Pentagon tenure, McNamara had come to doubt the value of widespread U.S. bombing, and he was fighting with his generals. President Lyndon Johnson lost faith or patience in him; McNamara would later write that he didn't know if he quit or was fired.
Reticent, McNamara long resisted offers to give a detailed accounting of his role in Vietnam. His son, who had protested the war his father helped to run, once said it was not within McNamara's "scope" to be reflective about the war.
McNamara's eventual mea culpa won him admiration from some former opponents of the war. Others said it was not enough, and three decades too late.
McNamara's book, "In Retrospect: The Tragedy and Lessons of Vietnam," appeared in 1995. McNamara disclosed that by 1967 he had deep misgivings about Vietnam — by then he had lost faith in America's capacity to prevail over guerrillas who had driven the French from the same jungle countryside.
Despite those doubts, he had continued to express public confidence that the application of enough American firepower would cause the Communists to make peace. In that period, the number of U.S. casualties — dead, missing and wounded — went from 7,466 to over 100,000.
McNamara wrote later that he and others had not asked five basic questions: "Was it true that the fall of South Vietnam would trigger the fall of all Southeast Asia? Would that constitute a grave threat to the West's security? What kind of war — conventional or guerrilla — might develop? Could the U.S. win with its troops fighting alongside the South Vietnamese? Should the U.S. not know the answers to all these questions before deciding whether to commit troops?"
He discussed similar themes in the 2003 documentary "The Fog of War: Eleven Lessons from the Life of Robert S. McNamara." With the U.S. in the first year of the war in Iraq, it became a popular and timely art-house attraction and won the Oscar for best documentary feature.
Monday, July 20, 2009
national debt could lead to next crisis
The Founding Fathers left one legacy not celebrated on Independence Day but which affects us all. It's the national debt.
The country first got into debt to help pay for the Revolutionary War. Growing ever since, the debt stands today at a staggering $11.4 trillion — equivalent to about $37,000 for each and every American. And it's expanding by over $1 trillion a year.
The mountain of debt easily could become the next full-fledged economic crisis without firm action from Washington, economists of all stripes warn.
"Unless we demonstrate a strong commitment to fiscal sustainability in the longer term, we will have neither financial stability nor healthy economic growth," Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke recently told Congress.
Higher taxes, or reduced federal benefits and services — or a combination of both — may be the inevitable consequences.
The debt is complicating efforts by President Barack Obama and Congress to cope with the worst recession in decades as stimulus and bailout spending combine with lower tax revenues to widen the gap.
The country first got into debt to help pay for the Revolutionary War. Growing ever since, the debt stands today at a staggering $11.4 trillion — equivalent to about $37,000 for each and every American. And it's expanding by over $1 trillion a year.
The mountain of debt easily could become the next full-fledged economic crisis without firm action from Washington, economists of all stripes warn.
"Unless we demonstrate a strong commitment to fiscal sustainability in the longer term, we will have neither financial stability nor healthy economic growth," Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke recently told Congress.
Higher taxes, or reduced federal benefits and services — or a combination of both — may be the inevitable consequences.
The debt is complicating efforts by President Barack Obama and Congress to cope with the worst recession in decades as stimulus and bailout spending combine with lower tax revenues to widen the gap.
Sarah Palin resigns as governor
Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska abruptly announced on Friday that she was quitting at the end of the month, shocking Republicans across the country and leaving both parties uncertain about whether she was leaving national politics or laying the groundwork for a presidential run.
Ms. Palin, 45, the Republican vice-presidential nominee last year, was supposed to serve through the end of 2010; she said she would cede control of the state to Lt. Gov. Sean Parnell on July 26.
Speaking outside her home in Wasilla, Ms. Palin offered conflicting signals about her intentions and her motivation.
In her tone and some of her words in an often-rambling announcement, she sounded like someone who was making a permanent exit from politics after what her friends have called a rough and dispiriting year.
But her remarks, delivered in a voice that often seemed rushed and jittery, sounded at times like those of a candidate with continued national aspirations, as when she suggested she could “fight for all our children’s future from outside the governor’s office.”
Ms. Palin said that she had decided not to seek re-election when her term expires at the end of next year and that, given that, she did not think it was fair to her constituents to continue in office.
“As I thought about this announcement that I would not seek re-election,” she said, “I thought about how much fun other governors have as lame ducks. They maybe travel around their state, travel to other states, maybe take their overseas international trade missions.”
“I’m not going to put Alaskans through that,” she said. “I promised efficiencies and effectiveness. That’s not how I’m wired. I’m not wired to operate under the same old politics as usual.”
* * *
Since then, Palin said in her resignation announcement, she’s been subjected to the “the politics of personal destruction” through more than a dozen “frivolous” ethics complaints filed with state officials.
“The state has wasted thousands of hours of your time and shelled out some 2 million of your dollars to respond to opposition research,” she said. And her family was “looking at more than half a million dollars in legal bills just in order to set the record straight,” she said.
Ms. Palin, 45, the Republican vice-presidential nominee last year, was supposed to serve through the end of 2010; she said she would cede control of the state to Lt. Gov. Sean Parnell on July 26.
Speaking outside her home in Wasilla, Ms. Palin offered conflicting signals about her intentions and her motivation.
In her tone and some of her words in an often-rambling announcement, she sounded like someone who was making a permanent exit from politics after what her friends have called a rough and dispiriting year.
But her remarks, delivered in a voice that often seemed rushed and jittery, sounded at times like those of a candidate with continued national aspirations, as when she suggested she could “fight for all our children’s future from outside the governor’s office.”
Ms. Palin said that she had decided not to seek re-election when her term expires at the end of next year and that, given that, she did not think it was fair to her constituents to continue in office.
“As I thought about this announcement that I would not seek re-election,” she said, “I thought about how much fun other governors have as lame ducks. They maybe travel around their state, travel to other states, maybe take their overseas international trade missions.”
“I’m not going to put Alaskans through that,” she said. “I promised efficiencies and effectiveness. That’s not how I’m wired. I’m not wired to operate under the same old politics as usual.”
* * *
Since then, Palin said in her resignation announcement, she’s been subjected to the “the politics of personal destruction” through more than a dozen “frivolous” ethics complaints filed with state officials.
“The state has wasted thousands of hours of your time and shelled out some 2 million of your dollars to respond to opposition research,” she said. And her family was “looking at more than half a million dollars in legal bills just in order to set the record straight,” she said.
Sunday, July 19, 2009
California IOUs
An ever-widening budget gap joined with intractable political paralysis to deliver California its biggest fiscal blow in decades on Thursday, when the state’s controller began printing i.o.u.’s in lieu of cash to pay taxpayers, vendors and local governments.
It was only the second time the state had adopted the emergency payment method since the Great Depression. The National Conference of State Legislatures had no record of any other state’s ever using them.
It was only the second time the state had adopted the emergency payment method since the Great Depression. The National Conference of State Legislatures had no record of any other state’s ever using them.
Friday, July 17, 2009
Walter Cronkite
Walter Cronkite, the premier TV anchorman of the networks' golden age who reported a tumultuous time with reassuring authority and came to be called "the most trusted man in America," died Friday. He was 92.
Cronkite's longtime chief of staff, Marlene Adler, said Cronkite died at 7:42 p.m. at his Manhattan home surrounded by family. She said the cause of death was cerebral vascular disease.
Adler said, "I have to go now" before breaking down into what sounded like a sob. She said she had no further comment.
Cronkite was the face of the "CBS Evening News" from 1962 to 1981, when stories ranged from the assassinations of President John F. Kennedy and the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. to racial and anti-war riots, Watergate and the Iranian hostage crisis.
It was Cronkite who read the bulletins coming from Dallas when Kennedy was shot Nov. 22, 1963, interrupting a live CBS-TV broadcast of the soap opera "As the World Turns."
Cronkite was the broadcaster to whom the title "anchorman" was first applied, and he came so identified in that role that eventually his own name became the term for the job in other languages. (Swedish anchors are known as Kronkiters; In Holland, they are Cronkiters.)
"He was a great broadcaster and a gentleman whose experience, honesty, professionalism and style defined the role of anchor and commentator," CBS Corp. chief executive Leslie Moonves said in a statement.
CBS has scheduled a prime-time special, "That's the Way it Was: Remembering Walter Cronkite," for 7 p.m. Sunday.
Cronkite's longtime chief of staff, Marlene Adler, said Cronkite died at 7:42 p.m. at his Manhattan home surrounded by family. She said the cause of death was cerebral vascular disease.
Adler said, "I have to go now" before breaking down into what sounded like a sob. She said she had no further comment.
Cronkite was the face of the "CBS Evening News" from 1962 to 1981, when stories ranged from the assassinations of President John F. Kennedy and the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. to racial and anti-war riots, Watergate and the Iranian hostage crisis.
It was Cronkite who read the bulletins coming from Dallas when Kennedy was shot Nov. 22, 1963, interrupting a live CBS-TV broadcast of the soap opera "As the World Turns."
Cronkite was the broadcaster to whom the title "anchorman" was first applied, and he came so identified in that role that eventually his own name became the term for the job in other languages. (Swedish anchors are known as Kronkiters; In Holland, they are Cronkiters.)
"He was a great broadcaster and a gentleman whose experience, honesty, professionalism and style defined the role of anchor and commentator," CBS Corp. chief executive Leslie Moonves said in a statement.
CBS has scheduled a prime-time special, "That's the Way it Was: Remembering Walter Cronkite," for 7 p.m. Sunday.
Chechens celebrate withdrawal of troops
GROZNY, Russia - Chechens danced in the streets and waved flags to celebrate Russia's decision Thursday to end its decadelong counterterrorism operation in the war-weary southern region.
The order by President Dmitry Medvedev paves the way for the withdrawal of tens of thousands of federal troops, whose presence has been hugely unpopular amid allegations of widespread abuses against civilians.
The counterterrorism operation — launched at the start of the second of two separatist wars that have battered the region in the last 15 years — involved curfews and limits on civilian air flights and limited access for journalists, among other measures.
Its cancellation boosted the authority of the region's Kremlin-backed President Ramzan Kadyrov, who joined several thousand people Thursday in dancing in a square in central Grozny.
Motorists blared horns and waved Chechen and Russian flags from car windows, as schools and a university interrupted classes to let students to join celebrations.
"I'm very happy that the horrible years we saw will never come back," said 21-year-old student Isa Musayev. "We spent those years in constant fear for our lives."
The order by President Dmitry Medvedev paves the way for the withdrawal of tens of thousands of federal troops, whose presence has been hugely unpopular amid allegations of widespread abuses against civilians.
The counterterrorism operation — launched at the start of the second of two separatist wars that have battered the region in the last 15 years — involved curfews and limits on civilian air flights and limited access for journalists, among other measures.
Its cancellation boosted the authority of the region's Kremlin-backed President Ramzan Kadyrov, who joined several thousand people Thursday in dancing in a square in central Grozny.
Motorists blared horns and waved Chechen and Russian flags from car windows, as schools and a university interrupted classes to let students to join celebrations.
"I'm very happy that the horrible years we saw will never come back," said 21-year-old student Isa Musayev. "We spent those years in constant fear for our lives."
Iraqis take control of Baghdad
BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraqi forces assumed formal control of Baghdad and other cities Tuesday after American troops handed over security in urban areas in a defining step toward ending the U.S. combat role in the country. A countdown clock broadcast on Iraqi TV ticked to zero as the midnight deadline passed for U.S. combat troops to finish their pullback to bases outside cities.
"The withdrawal of American troops is completed now from all cities after everything they sacrificed for the sake of security," said Sadiq al-Rikabi, a senior adviser to Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. "We are now celebrating the restoration of sovereignty."
Fireworks, not bombings, colored the Baghdad skyline late Monday, and thousands attended a party in a park where singers performed patriotic songs. Loudspeakers at police stations and military checkpoints played recordings of similar tunes throughout the day, as Iraqi military vehicles decorated with flowers and national flags patrolled the capital.
"The withdrawal of American troops is completed now from all cities after everything they sacrificed for the sake of security," said Sadiq al-Rikabi, a senior adviser to Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. "We are now celebrating the restoration of sovereignty."
Fireworks, not bombings, colored the Baghdad skyline late Monday, and thousands attended a party in a park where singers performed patriotic songs. Loudspeakers at police stations and military checkpoints played recordings of similar tunes throughout the day, as Iraqi military vehicles decorated with flowers and national flags patrolled the capital.
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
Russia to close down casinos
One of the largest mass layoffs in recent Russian history is to occur on Wednesday, and the Kremlin itself is decreeing it, economic crisis or not.
The government is shutting down every last legal casino and slot-machine parlor across the land, under an antivice plan promoted by Vladimir V. Putin that just a few months ago was widely perceived as far-fetched. But the result will be hundreds of thousands of people thrown out of work.
The government is shutting down every last legal casino and slot-machine parlor across the land, under an antivice plan promoted by Vladimir V. Putin that just a few months ago was widely perceived as far-fetched. But the result will be hundreds of thousands of people thrown out of work.
Friday, July 10, 2009
World's 65 and older population to triple by 2050
The world's 65-and-older population will triple by mid-century to 1 in 6 people, leaving the U.S. and other nations struggling to support the elderly.
The number of senior citizens has already jumped 23 percent since 2000 to 516 million, according to census estimates released on Tuesday. That's more than double the growth rate for the general population.
The world's population has been graying for many years due to declining births and medical advances that have extended life spans. As the fastest-growing age group, seniors now comprise just under 8 percent of the world's 6.8 billion people. But demographers warn the biggest shift is yet to come. They cite a coming wave of retirements from baby boomers and China's Red Guard generation that will shrink pensions and add to rising health care costs.
Germany, Italy, Japan and Monaco have the most senior citizens, with 20 percent or more of their people 65 and older.
In the U.S., residents who are 65 and older currently make up 13 percent of the population, but that will double to 88.5 million by mid-century. In two years, the oldest of the baby boomers will start turning 65. The baby boomer bulge will continue padding the senior population year after year, growing to 1 in 5 U.S. residents by 2030.
The number of senior citizens has already jumped 23 percent since 2000 to 516 million, according to census estimates released on Tuesday. That's more than double the growth rate for the general population.
The world's population has been graying for many years due to declining births and medical advances that have extended life spans. As the fastest-growing age group, seniors now comprise just under 8 percent of the world's 6.8 billion people. But demographers warn the biggest shift is yet to come. They cite a coming wave of retirements from baby boomers and China's Red Guard generation that will shrink pensions and add to rising health care costs.
Germany, Italy, Japan and Monaco have the most senior citizens, with 20 percent or more of their people 65 and older.
In the U.S., residents who are 65 and older currently make up 13 percent of the population, but that will double to 88.5 million by mid-century. In two years, the oldest of the baby boomers will start turning 65. The baby boomer bulge will continue padding the senior population year after year, growing to 1 in 5 U.S. residents by 2030.
Wednesday, July 08, 2009
1 Billion Hungry
ROME (AP) — The global financial meltdown has pushed the ranks of the world's hungry to a record 1 billion, a grim milestone that poses a threat to peace and security, U.N. food officials said Friday.
Because of war, drought, political instability, high food prices and poverty, hunger now affects one in six people, by the United Nations' estimate.
The financial meltdown has compounded the crisis in what the head of the U.N. Food and Agricultural Organization called a "devastating combination for the world's most vulnerable."
Compared with last year, there are 100 million more people who are hungry, meaning they consume fewer than 1,800 calories a day, the agency said.
"No part of the world is immune," FAO's Director-General Jacques Diouf said. "All world regions have been affected by the rise of food insecurity."
Because of war, drought, political instability, high food prices and poverty, hunger now affects one in six people, by the United Nations' estimate.
The financial meltdown has compounded the crisis in what the head of the U.N. Food and Agricultural Organization called a "devastating combination for the world's most vulnerable."
Compared with last year, there are 100 million more people who are hungry, meaning they consume fewer than 1,800 calories a day, the agency said.
"No part of the world is immune," FAO's Director-General Jacques Diouf said. "All world regions have been affected by the rise of food insecurity."
Tuesday, July 07, 2009
World without Nukes?
[7/7/09] MOSCOW — President Obama signed an agreement on Monday to cut American and Russian strategic nuclear arsenals by at least one-quarter, a first step in a broader effort intended to reduce the threat of such weapons drastically and to prevent their further spread to unstable regions.
Mr. Obama, on his first visit to Russia since taking office, and President Dmitri A. Medvedev agreed on the basic terms of a treaty to reduce the number of warheads and missiles to the lowest levels since the early years of the cold war.
Mr. Obama hailed the arms agreement as an example for the world as he pursued a broader agenda aimed at countering — and eventually eliminating — the spread of nuclear weapons, a goal he hopes to make a defining legacy of his presidency.
While the United States and Russia together have 95 percent of the world’s nuclear weapons, Mr. Obama also views Russia as an influential player in deterring nuclear programs in Iran and North Korea.
* * *
[posted 5/1/09] Just hours after North Korea launched a long-range rocket, President Barack Obama called for "a world without nuclear weapons" and said the United States has a “moral responsibility ” to lead the way, as the only nation ever to use them.
Obama’s speech was long planned as the centerpiece of his first presidential trip overseas, but it gained new urgency after North Korea sent a multi-part rocket soaring over the Sea of Japan early Sunday morning.
North Korea insisted the launch was meant to put a satellite into space but the U.S. and other nations believe Pyongyang is trying to develop the capability to launch a nuclear warhead.
The president, who was woken up just after 4:30 a.m. local time by news of the launch, spoke to the authoritarian state in remarks hastily added to his text.
“Now is the time for a strong international response, and North Korea must know that the path to security and respect will never come through threats and illegal weapons,” Obama said to thousands thronged into the cobblestone square outside the elegant Prague Castle, in what was the largest crowd of his five-country, eight-day swing.
“All nations must come together to build a stronger, global regime. And that's why we must stand shoulder to shoulder to pressure the North Koreans to change course.”
Even without what Obama called North Korea’s “provocation,” the speech was set against considerable symbolism.
The president directly addressed the Cold War history of this former Soviet bloc city, calling the remaining nuclear weapons “the most dangerous legacy” of that era.
He again pointed to history to say that America must lead. “As a nuclear power – as the only nuclear power to have used a nuclear weapon – the United States has a moral responsibility to act,” he said.
Obama proposed doing so by reducing America’s arsenal, if not altogether eliminating it; hosting a summit on nuclear security; seeking ratification of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty; strengthening the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty; and pursuing a new agreement aimed at stopping the production of fissile materials.
Also, he proposes gathering up all vulnerable nuclear material – or “loose nukes” – within four years. That’s an issue Obama also worked on in the Senate, with Sen. Dick Lugar (R-Ind.).
* * *
In the depths of the cold war, in 1983, a senior at Columbia University wrote in a campus newsmagazine, Sundial, about the vision of “a nuclear free world.” He railed against discussions of “first- versus second-strike capabilities” that “suit the military-industrial interests” with their “billion-dollar erector sets,” and agitated for the elimination of global arsenals holding tens of thousands of deadly warheads.
The student was Barack Obama, and he was clearly trying to sort out his thoughts. In the conclusion, he denounced “the twisted logic of which we are a part today” and praised student efforts to realize “the possibility of a decent world.” But his article, “Breaking the War Mentality,” which only recently has been rediscovered, said little about how to achieve the utopian dream.
Twenty-six years later, the author, in his new job as president of the United States, has begun pushing for new global rules, treaties and alliances that he insists can establish a nuclear-free world.
“I’m not naïve,” President Obama told a cheering throng in Prague this spring. “This goal will not be reached quickly — perhaps not in my lifetime. It will take patience and persistence.”
Yet no previous American president has set out a step-by-step agenda for the eventual elimination of nuclear arms. Mr. Obama is starting relatively small, using a visit to Russia that starts Monday to advance an intense negotiation, with a treaty deadline of the year’s end, to reduce the arsenals of the nuclear superpowers to roughly 1,500 warheads each, from about 2,200. In an interview on Saturday, Mr. Obama, conscious of his critics, stressed that “I’ve made clear that we will retain our deterrent capacity as long as there is a country with nuclear weapons.”
Mr. Obama, on his first visit to Russia since taking office, and President Dmitri A. Medvedev agreed on the basic terms of a treaty to reduce the number of warheads and missiles to the lowest levels since the early years of the cold war.
Mr. Obama hailed the arms agreement as an example for the world as he pursued a broader agenda aimed at countering — and eventually eliminating — the spread of nuclear weapons, a goal he hopes to make a defining legacy of his presidency.
While the United States and Russia together have 95 percent of the world’s nuclear weapons, Mr. Obama also views Russia as an influential player in deterring nuclear programs in Iran and North Korea.
* * *
[posted 5/1/09] Just hours after North Korea launched a long-range rocket, President Barack Obama called for "a world without nuclear weapons" and said the United States has a “moral responsibility ” to lead the way, as the only nation ever to use them.
Obama’s speech was long planned as the centerpiece of his first presidential trip overseas, but it gained new urgency after North Korea sent a multi-part rocket soaring over the Sea of Japan early Sunday morning.
North Korea insisted the launch was meant to put a satellite into space but the U.S. and other nations believe Pyongyang is trying to develop the capability to launch a nuclear warhead.
The president, who was woken up just after 4:30 a.m. local time by news of the launch, spoke to the authoritarian state in remarks hastily added to his text.
“Now is the time for a strong international response, and North Korea must know that the path to security and respect will never come through threats and illegal weapons,” Obama said to thousands thronged into the cobblestone square outside the elegant Prague Castle, in what was the largest crowd of his five-country, eight-day swing.
“All nations must come together to build a stronger, global regime. And that's why we must stand shoulder to shoulder to pressure the North Koreans to change course.”
Even without what Obama called North Korea’s “provocation,” the speech was set against considerable symbolism.
The president directly addressed the Cold War history of this former Soviet bloc city, calling the remaining nuclear weapons “the most dangerous legacy” of that era.
He again pointed to history to say that America must lead. “As a nuclear power – as the only nuclear power to have used a nuclear weapon – the United States has a moral responsibility to act,” he said.
Obama proposed doing so by reducing America’s arsenal, if not altogether eliminating it; hosting a summit on nuclear security; seeking ratification of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty; strengthening the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty; and pursuing a new agreement aimed at stopping the production of fissile materials.
Also, he proposes gathering up all vulnerable nuclear material – or “loose nukes” – within four years. That’s an issue Obama also worked on in the Senate, with Sen. Dick Lugar (R-Ind.).
* * *
In the depths of the cold war, in 1983, a senior at Columbia University wrote in a campus newsmagazine, Sundial, about the vision of “a nuclear free world.” He railed against discussions of “first- versus second-strike capabilities” that “suit the military-industrial interests” with their “billion-dollar erector sets,” and agitated for the elimination of global arsenals holding tens of thousands of deadly warheads.
The student was Barack Obama, and he was clearly trying to sort out his thoughts. In the conclusion, he denounced “the twisted logic of which we are a part today” and praised student efforts to realize “the possibility of a decent world.” But his article, “Breaking the War Mentality,” which only recently has been rediscovered, said little about how to achieve the utopian dream.
Twenty-six years later, the author, in his new job as president of the United States, has begun pushing for new global rules, treaties and alliances that he insists can establish a nuclear-free world.
“I’m not naïve,” President Obama told a cheering throng in Prague this spring. “This goal will not be reached quickly — perhaps not in my lifetime. It will take patience and persistence.”
Yet no previous American president has set out a step-by-step agenda for the eventual elimination of nuclear arms. Mr. Obama is starting relatively small, using a visit to Russia that starts Monday to advance an intense negotiation, with a treaty deadline of the year’s end, to reduce the arsenals of the nuclear superpowers to roughly 1,500 warheads each, from about 2,200. In an interview on Saturday, Mr. Obama, conscious of his critics, stressed that “I’ve made clear that we will retain our deterrent capacity as long as there is a country with nuclear weapons.”
Wednesday, July 01, 2009
110,600 Iraqis dead
Iraq's government has recorded 87,215 of its citizens killed since 2005 in violence ranging from catastrophic bombings to execution-style slayings, according to statistics obtained by The Associated Press that break open one of the most closely guarded secrets of the war.
Combined with tallies based on hospital sources and media reports since the beginning of the war and an in-depth review of available evidence by The Associated Press, the government figures show that more than 110,600 Iraqis have died in violence since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion.
The number is a minimum count of violent deaths. The official who provided the data to the AP, on condition of anonymity because of its sensitivity, estimated the actual number of deaths at 10 to 20 percent higher because of thousands who are still missing and civilians who were buried in the chaos of war without official records.
The numbers show just how traumatic the war has been for Iraq. In a nation of 29 million people, the deaths represent 0.38 percent of the population. Proportionally, that would be like the United States losing 1.2 million people to violence in the four-year period; about 17,000 people are murdered every year in the U.S.
While the Pentagon maintains meticulous records of the number of American troops killed — at least 4,276 as of Thursday — it does not publicly release comprehensive Iraqi casualty figures. American units around the country do compile figures, drawing them mostly from the Iraqi military. They are not released publicly but are used to determine trends, according to Lt. Col. Mark Ballesteros, a U.S. spokesman in Baghdad.
Combined with tallies based on hospital sources and media reports since the beginning of the war and an in-depth review of available evidence by The Associated Press, the government figures show that more than 110,600 Iraqis have died in violence since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion.
The number is a minimum count of violent deaths. The official who provided the data to the AP, on condition of anonymity because of its sensitivity, estimated the actual number of deaths at 10 to 20 percent higher because of thousands who are still missing and civilians who were buried in the chaos of war without official records.
The numbers show just how traumatic the war has been for Iraq. In a nation of 29 million people, the deaths represent 0.38 percent of the population. Proportionally, that would be like the United States losing 1.2 million people to violence in the four-year period; about 17,000 people are murdered every year in the U.S.
While the Pentagon maintains meticulous records of the number of American troops killed — at least 4,276 as of Thursday — it does not publicly release comprehensive Iraqi casualty figures. American units around the country do compile figures, drawing them mostly from the Iraqi military. They are not released publicly but are used to determine trends, according to Lt. Col. Mark Ballesteros, a U.S. spokesman in Baghdad.
Monday, June 29, 2009
Taliban and al-Qaida
Q: Could you explain in really simple terms the difference between the Taliban and al-Qaida?
A: The Taliban and al-Qaida are Islamic extremist groups joined in battle against the United States.
The Taliban, Arabic for religious students, ruled Afghanistan between 1996 and 2001, when they were ousted by an American-led invasion following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, according to a New York Times history. Their rule was characterized by strict adherence to fundamentalist Islamic law.
Al-Qaida, often spelled al-Qaeda, is a terrorist network first formed to drive the Soviet Union out of Afghanistan. It was created by Osama bin Laden, a Saudi Arabian native who orchestrated the Sept. 11 attacks.
During their reign over Afghanistan, the Taliban sheltered bin Laden’s al-Qaida. After the Sept. 11 attacks, President Bush demanded that the Taliban give up bin Laden. When they refused, the United States launched a major air and ground campaign that drove the Taliban out of major Afghan cities. U.S. forces also battled al-Qaida in the Afghan mountains, killing and capturing some of its leaders, but not bin Laden.
With U.S. forces turning their main attention to Iraq, the Taliban regained strength in Afghanistan. President Obama has increased the number of American troops in Afghanistan to battle the Taliban.
A: The Taliban and al-Qaida are Islamic extremist groups joined in battle against the United States.
The Taliban, Arabic for religious students, ruled Afghanistan between 1996 and 2001, when they were ousted by an American-led invasion following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, according to a New York Times history. Their rule was characterized by strict adherence to fundamentalist Islamic law.
Al-Qaida, often spelled al-Qaeda, is a terrorist network first formed to drive the Soviet Union out of Afghanistan. It was created by Osama bin Laden, a Saudi Arabian native who orchestrated the Sept. 11 attacks.
During their reign over Afghanistan, the Taliban sheltered bin Laden’s al-Qaida. After the Sept. 11 attacks, President Bush demanded that the Taliban give up bin Laden. When they refused, the United States launched a major air and ground campaign that drove the Taliban out of major Afghan cities. U.S. forces also battled al-Qaida in the Afghan mountains, killing and capturing some of its leaders, but not bin Laden.
With U.S. forces turning their main attention to Iraq, the Taliban regained strength in Afghanistan. President Obama has increased the number of American troops in Afghanistan to battle the Taliban.
Friday, June 26, 2009
Attacks on Reagonomics
the more one looks into the origins of the current disaster, the clearer it becomes that the key wrong turn — the turn that made crisis inevitable — took place in the early 1980s, during the Reagan years.
Attacks on Reaganomics usually focus on rising inequality and fiscal irresponsibility. Indeed, Reagan ushered in an era in which a small minority grew vastly rich, while working families saw only meager gains. He also broke with longstanding rules of fiscal prudence.
On the latter point: traditionally, the U.S. government ran significant budget deficits only in times of war or economic emergency. Federal debt as a percentage of G.D.P. fell steadily from the end of World War II until 1980. But indebtedness began rising under Reagan; it fell again in the Clinton years, but resumed its rise under the Bush administration, leaving us ill prepared for the emergency now upon us.
The increase in public debt was, however, dwarfed by the rise in private debt, made possible by financial deregulation. The change in America’s financial rules was Reagan’s biggest legacy. And it’s the gift that keeps on taking.
-- Paul Krugman
***
more from Krugman
The debate over the “public option” in health care has been dismaying in many ways. Perhaps the most depressing aspect for progressives, however, has been the extent to which opponents of greater choice in health care have gained traction — in Congress, if not with the broader public — simply by repeating, over and over again, that the public option would be, horrors, a government program.
Washington, it seems, is still ruled by Reaganism — by an ideology that says government intervention is always bad, and leaving the private sector to its own devices is always good.
Call me naïve, but I actually hoped that the failure of Reaganism in practice would kill it. It turns out, however, to be a zombie doctrine: even though it should be dead, it keeps on coming.
Let’s talk for a moment about why the age of Reagan should be over.
First of all, even before the current crisis Reaganomics had failed to deliver what it promised. Remember how lower taxes on high incomes and deregulation that unleashed the “magic of the marketplace” were supposed to lead to dramatically better outcomes for everyone? Well, it didn’t happen.
To be sure, the wealthy benefited enormously: the real incomes of the top .01 percent of Americans rose sevenfold between 1980 and 2007. But the real income of the median family rose only 22 percent, less than a third its growth over the previous 27 years.
And then there’s the small matter of the worst recession since the 1930s.
There’s a lot to be said about the financial disaster of the last two years, but the short version is simple: politicians in the thrall of Reaganite ideology dismantled the New Deal regulations that had prevented banking crises for half a century, believing that financial markets could take care of themselves. The effect was to make the financial system vulnerable to a 1930s-style crisis — and the crisis came.
“We have always known that heedless self-interest was bad morals,” said Franklin Delano Roosevelt in 1937. “We know now that it is bad economics.” And last year we learned that lesson all over again.
Or did we? The astonishing thing about the current political scene is the extent to which nothing has changed.
Attacks on Reaganomics usually focus on rising inequality and fiscal irresponsibility. Indeed, Reagan ushered in an era in which a small minority grew vastly rich, while working families saw only meager gains. He also broke with longstanding rules of fiscal prudence.
On the latter point: traditionally, the U.S. government ran significant budget deficits only in times of war or economic emergency. Federal debt as a percentage of G.D.P. fell steadily from the end of World War II until 1980. But indebtedness began rising under Reagan; it fell again in the Clinton years, but resumed its rise under the Bush administration, leaving us ill prepared for the emergency now upon us.
The increase in public debt was, however, dwarfed by the rise in private debt, made possible by financial deregulation. The change in America’s financial rules was Reagan’s biggest legacy. And it’s the gift that keeps on taking.
-- Paul Krugman
***
more from Krugman
The debate over the “public option” in health care has been dismaying in many ways. Perhaps the most depressing aspect for progressives, however, has been the extent to which opponents of greater choice in health care have gained traction — in Congress, if not with the broader public — simply by repeating, over and over again, that the public option would be, horrors, a government program.
Washington, it seems, is still ruled by Reaganism — by an ideology that says government intervention is always bad, and leaving the private sector to its own devices is always good.
Call me naïve, but I actually hoped that the failure of Reaganism in practice would kill it. It turns out, however, to be a zombie doctrine: even though it should be dead, it keeps on coming.
Let’s talk for a moment about why the age of Reagan should be over.
First of all, even before the current crisis Reaganomics had failed to deliver what it promised. Remember how lower taxes on high incomes and deregulation that unleashed the “magic of the marketplace” were supposed to lead to dramatically better outcomes for everyone? Well, it didn’t happen.
To be sure, the wealthy benefited enormously: the real incomes of the top .01 percent of Americans rose sevenfold between 1980 and 2007. But the real income of the median family rose only 22 percent, less than a third its growth over the previous 27 years.
And then there’s the small matter of the worst recession since the 1930s.
There’s a lot to be said about the financial disaster of the last two years, but the short version is simple: politicians in the thrall of Reaganite ideology dismantled the New Deal regulations that had prevented banking crises for half a century, believing that financial markets could take care of themselves. The effect was to make the financial system vulnerable to a 1930s-style crisis — and the crisis came.
“We have always known that heedless self-interest was bad morals,” said Franklin Delano Roosevelt in 1937. “We know now that it is bad economics.” And last year we learned that lesson all over again.
Or did we? The astonishing thing about the current political scene is the extent to which nothing has changed.
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Michael Jackson
We've just learned Michael Jackson has died. He was 50.
Michael suffered a cardiac arrest earlier this afternoon at his Holmby Hills home and paramedics were unable to revive him. We're told when paramedics arrived Jackson had no pulse and they never got a pulse back.
A source tells us Jackson was dead when paramedics arrived. A cardiologist at UCLA tells TMZ Jackson died of cardiac arrest.
Once at the hospital, the staff tried to resuscitate him but he was completely unresponsive.
We're told one of the staff members at Jackson's home called 911.
La Toya ran in the hospital sobbing after Jackson was pronounced dead.
Michael is survived by three children: Michael Joseph Jackson, Jr., Paris Michael Katherine Jackson and Prince "Blanket" Michael Jackson II.
* * *
When you think of Michael Jackson, the first thing that comes to mind might be his unique dancing ability — particularly his moonwalk dance, where he would spin then glide in reverse, giving an effortless impression that he was impervious to the laws of gravity. But those skills sometimes overshadowed his undeniable musical talents and innovations, which spanned several decades, beginning in the '70s and lasting into the new millennium.
It all began for MJ as a member of the Jackson 5, a sibling outfit comprised of him and his brothers.
* * *
[7/7/09] Michael Jackson memorial
Michael Jackson filled Aloha Stadium twice
* * *
[8/24/09] Coroner rules Jackson’s death a homicide
Michael suffered a cardiac arrest earlier this afternoon at his Holmby Hills home and paramedics were unable to revive him. We're told when paramedics arrived Jackson had no pulse and they never got a pulse back.
A source tells us Jackson was dead when paramedics arrived. A cardiologist at UCLA tells TMZ Jackson died of cardiac arrest.
Once at the hospital, the staff tried to resuscitate him but he was completely unresponsive.
We're told one of the staff members at Jackson's home called 911.
La Toya ran in the hospital sobbing after Jackson was pronounced dead.
Michael is survived by three children: Michael Joseph Jackson, Jr., Paris Michael Katherine Jackson and Prince "Blanket" Michael Jackson II.
* * *
When you think of Michael Jackson, the first thing that comes to mind might be his unique dancing ability — particularly his moonwalk dance, where he would spin then glide in reverse, giving an effortless impression that he was impervious to the laws of gravity. But those skills sometimes overshadowed his undeniable musical talents and innovations, which spanned several decades, beginning in the '70s and lasting into the new millennium.
It all began for MJ as a member of the Jackson 5, a sibling outfit comprised of him and his brothers.
* * *
[7/7/09] Michael Jackson memorial
Michael Jackson filled Aloha Stadium twice
* * *
[8/24/09] Coroner rules Jackson’s death a homicide
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Bush and Clinton brothers?
Former President George W. Bush called former President Bill Clinton "his brother" and the two rarely disagreed in their first-ever appearance together on stage.
The Republican and Democratic ex-presidents defended each other at a Toronto forum on Friday, disappointing some in the crowd of 6,000 who expected a more heated debate.
Bush and Clinton did differ on Iraq. Clinton said U.N inspectors should have been given more time to conduct the search for weapons of mass destruction and Bush should have concentrated on Afghanistan. Bush disagreed.
"I don't buy the premise that our attention was diverted," Bush said.
Bush joked about how much time his father, former President George H.W. Bush, and Clinton spend together. He said his mother, Barbara Bush, "said President Clinton and Father share the stage so much, he's like a son to her."
He said, "So brother, it's good to see you."
The Republican and Democratic ex-presidents defended each other at a Toronto forum on Friday, disappointing some in the crowd of 6,000 who expected a more heated debate.
Bush and Clinton did differ on Iraq. Clinton said U.N inspectors should have been given more time to conduct the search for weapons of mass destruction and Bush should have concentrated on Afghanistan. Bush disagreed.
"I don't buy the premise that our attention was diverted," Bush said.
Bush joked about how much time his father, former President George H.W. Bush, and Clinton spend together. He said his mother, Barbara Bush, "said President Clinton and Father share the stage so much, he's like a son to her."
He said, "So brother, it's good to see you."
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Duke Bainum
City Councilman Duke Bainum was remembered yesterday as a political moderate who reached out to help those most in need.
Bainum was "always committed and always ready to do what was the best for the people in his district," said council chairman Todd Apo.
He seemed to be a perennial candidate who rarely fit the mold of a typical Hawai'i politician.
"He was a medical doctor and naturally liked healthcare, and anything related to people issues, having to deal with human and social issues," said Richard Port, former chairman of the Hawai'i Democratic Party.
His message resonated with immigrants while Bainum's personal appeal also attracted moderate-to-conservative voters.
"He did well with Filipinos, in particular," said John Hart, a Hawai'i Pacific University professor of communication who specializes in political communication and rhetoric. "But he also appealed to haole voters. I would characterize him as that middle-of-the road politician who appealed to many demographics."
Bainum appeared fine at work Tuesday and later played with his two young sons but experienced chest pains at night and was taken to the hospital, said Mallory Fujitani, a senior adviser.
Bainum had been driving along Wilder Avenue around 9:30 p.m. Tuesday when he experienced chest pains and pulled over and called 911, city spokesman Bill Brennan said.
Paramedics took him to The Queen's Medical Center, Brennan said. Bainum died around 11 p.m. of complications from an aortic aneurysm, said Honolulu medical examiner Dr. Kanthi De Alwis.
There were no warning signs other than chest pain, said Mallory Fujitani, Bainum's senior adviser.
Bainum was "always committed and always ready to do what was the best for the people in his district," said council chairman Todd Apo.
He seemed to be a perennial candidate who rarely fit the mold of a typical Hawai'i politician.
"He was a medical doctor and naturally liked healthcare, and anything related to people issues, having to deal with human and social issues," said Richard Port, former chairman of the Hawai'i Democratic Party.
His message resonated with immigrants while Bainum's personal appeal also attracted moderate-to-conservative voters.
"He did well with Filipinos, in particular," said John Hart, a Hawai'i Pacific University professor of communication who specializes in political communication and rhetoric. "But he also appealed to haole voters. I would characterize him as that middle-of-the road politician who appealed to many demographics."
Bainum appeared fine at work Tuesday and later played with his two young sons but experienced chest pains at night and was taken to the hospital, said Mallory Fujitani, a senior adviser.
Bainum had been driving along Wilder Avenue around 9:30 p.m. Tuesday when he experienced chest pains and pulled over and called 911, city spokesman Bill Brennan said.
Paramedics took him to The Queen's Medical Center, Brennan said. Bainum died around 11 p.m. of complications from an aortic aneurysm, said Honolulu medical examiner Dr. Kanthi De Alwis.
There were no warning signs other than chest pain, said Mallory Fujitani, Bainum's senior adviser.
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
What Olbermann would pay
The debate over torture is getting personal for two of cable TV's prime-time hosts. After Fox News Channel's Sean Hannity made a seemingly impromptu offer last week to undergo waterboarding as a benefit for charity, MSNBC's Keith Olbermann leapt at it. He offered $1,000 to the families of U.S. troops for every second Hannity withstood the technique.
Olbermann repeated the offer on Monday's show and said in an interview Tuesday that he's heard no response. He said he'll continue to pursue it.
* * *
[5/28/09] NEW YORK (AP) — Keith Olbermann's offer for a donation if Sean Hannity undergoes waterboarding is off the table, the money gone instead to radio host Erich "Mancow" Muller's charity of choice after Mancow's disquieting experience with the interrogation technique.
Muller said Wednesday he volunteered to be waterboarded last week to prove that the controversial technique isn't torture. Instead, he said the experience showed he was wrong.
"I thought I was going to die," he said.
Waterboarding has been a hot topic on talk TV and radio the last several weeks. The liberal Olbermann of MSNBC contends it's torture; the conservative Hannity of Fox News Channel says it's not. Olbermann leaped on it when Hannity said on the air last month that he'd be waterboarded for charity.
Muller did it in his Chicago studio last Friday. He said it was worse than drowning, something he nearly experienced as a boy before being rescued. Muller went on Olbermann's MSNBC show Tuesday to talk about his experience, after Olbermann pledged $10,000 to Veterans of Valor, an organization formed by Iraq War veteran Klay South to help injured veterans.
"I was laughing about this, that it was a stupid radio thing," Muller told Olbermann. "I thought I could go 30 seconds. I'll hold my breath. Big deal, they'll sprinkle water. It is a big deal. It's torture."
* * *
[5/29/09] Erich "Mancow" Muller, responding to a report he faked being waterboarded on Chicago's WLS-AM 890 a week earlier, said Friday that both his experience and subsequent newfound belief that the controversial interrogation technique is torture were "absolutely real."
Before Muller went on MSNBC's "Countdown with Keith Olbermann" for the second time this week on Friday night to discuss the latest developments (above), Muller readily acknowledged in an interview with the Chicago Tribune that the waterboarding stunt was not and never meant to be an exact re-creation of how the technique is administered to detainees at Guantanamo Bay.
Olbermann repeated the offer on Monday's show and said in an interview Tuesday that he's heard no response. He said he'll continue to pursue it.
* * *
[5/28/09] NEW YORK (AP) — Keith Olbermann's offer for a donation if Sean Hannity undergoes waterboarding is off the table, the money gone instead to radio host Erich "Mancow" Muller's charity of choice after Mancow's disquieting experience with the interrogation technique.
Muller said Wednesday he volunteered to be waterboarded last week to prove that the controversial technique isn't torture. Instead, he said the experience showed he was wrong.
"I thought I was going to die," he said.
Waterboarding has been a hot topic on talk TV and radio the last several weeks. The liberal Olbermann of MSNBC contends it's torture; the conservative Hannity of Fox News Channel says it's not. Olbermann leaped on it when Hannity said on the air last month that he'd be waterboarded for charity.
Muller did it in his Chicago studio last Friday. He said it was worse than drowning, something he nearly experienced as a boy before being rescued. Muller went on Olbermann's MSNBC show Tuesday to talk about his experience, after Olbermann pledged $10,000 to Veterans of Valor, an organization formed by Iraq War veteran Klay South to help injured veterans.
"I was laughing about this, that it was a stupid radio thing," Muller told Olbermann. "I thought I could go 30 seconds. I'll hold my breath. Big deal, they'll sprinkle water. It is a big deal. It's torture."
* * *
[5/29/09] Erich "Mancow" Muller, responding to a report he faked being waterboarded on Chicago's WLS-AM 890 a week earlier, said Friday that both his experience and subsequent newfound belief that the controversial interrogation technique is torture were "absolutely real."
Before Muller went on MSNBC's "Countdown with Keith Olbermann" for the second time this week on Friday night to discuss the latest developments (above), Muller readily acknowledged in an interview with the Chicago Tribune that the waterboarding stunt was not and never meant to be an exact re-creation of how the technique is administered to detainees at Guantanamo Bay.
swine flu alert
The Geneva-based World Health Organization today raised its alert level for the fast-spreading swine flu to its next-to-highest notch, signaling a global pandemic could be imminent.
The move came after the virus spread to at least 11 U.S. states from coast to coast and swept deeper into Europe.
"It really is all of humanity that is under threat during a pandemic," said WHO Director General Margaret Chan. "We do not have all the answers right now but we will get them."
Raising the alert level to 5, the second jump in three days, means a pandemic, or a global outbreak of a new virus, is imminent. It would be the first global pandemic in 41 years.
[4/30/09] Swine flu shuts down Mexico
The move came after the virus spread to at least 11 U.S. states from coast to coast and swept deeper into Europe.
"It really is all of humanity that is under threat during a pandemic," said WHO Director General Margaret Chan. "We do not have all the answers right now but we will get them."
Raising the alert level to 5, the second jump in three days, means a pandemic, or a global outbreak of a new virus, is imminent. It would be the first global pandemic in 41 years.
[4/30/09] Swine flu shuts down Mexico
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Oahu Cell Phone Ban
[4/23/09] Members of the City Council who were around in 2002, the last time an attempt was made to ban cell-phone use while driving, recall a vastly different atmosphere.
"The lobbyists from the phone companies descended on us and lots of folks came in to voice their disapproval," Councilman Duke Bainum recalled yesterday. "It didn't even get out of committee."
But now, he added, "Many accidents and, unfortunately, lives later, we're at a point where the environment is completely different."
That was evident yesterday as the Council gave final approval to Bill 4, a measure to ban talking on a cell phone while driving unless a hands-free device is used.
[5/7/09] Starting July 1, Honolulu motorists will not be allowed to use hand-held cell phones and other electronic devices while driving, under a bill signed by Mayor Mufi Hannemann today.
[6/26/09, posted 7/7] New rules of the road
[6/29/09] It's about time for such a requirement, inadequate as it might be. More than 40 countries have such a law, along with four states and numerous municipalities. Twelve years have passed since a study published by the New England Journal of Medicine found that the risk of an accident while the driver is on a cell phone quadruples, about the same risk as driving drunk.
Not that a Bluetooth headset is any safer. Nearly eight years have passed since researchers at the University of Utah completed a study finding that hands-free phones are as distracting for motorists as hand-held cell phones.
[7/19/00] Extensive research shows the dangers of distracted driving. Studies say that drivers using phones are four times as likely to cause a crash as other drivers, and the likelihood that they will crash is equal to that of someone with a .08 percent blood alcohol level, the point at which drivers are generally considered intoxicated. Research also shows that hands-free devices do not eliminate the risks, and may worsen them by suggesting that the behavior is safe.
A 2003 Harvard study estimated that cellphone distractions caused 2,600 traffic deaths every year, and 330,000 accidents that result in moderate or severe injuries.
Yet Americans have largely ignored that research. Instead, they increasingly use phones, navigation devices and even laptops to turn their cars into mobile offices, chat rooms and entertainment centers, making roads more dangerous.
[7/22/09] In 2003, researchers at a federal agency proposed a long-term study of 10,000 drivers to assess the safety risk posed by cellphone use behind the wheel.
They sought the study based on evidence that such multitasking was a serious and growing threat on America’s roadways.
But such an ambitious study never happened. And the researchers’ agency, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, decided not to make public hundreds of pages of research and warnings about the use of phones by drivers — in part, officials say, because of concerns about angering Congress.
On Tuesday, the full body of research is being made public for the first time by two consumer advocacy groups, which filed a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit for the documents. The Center for Auto Safety and Public Citizen provided a copy to The New York Times, which is publishing the documents on its Web site.
In interviews, the officials who withheld the research offered their fullest explanation to date.
The former head of the highway safety agency said he was urged to withhold the research to avoid antagonizing members of Congress who had warned the agency to stick to its mission of gathering safety data but not to lobby states.
Critics say that rationale and the failure of the Transportation Department, which oversees the highway agency, to more vigorously pursue distracted driving has cost lives and allowed to blossom a culture of behind-the-wheel multitasking.
“We’re looking at a problem that could be as bad as drunk driving, and the government has covered it up,” said Clarence Ditlow, director of the Center for Auto Safety.
The group petitioned for the information after The Los Angeles Times wrote about the research last year. Mother Jones later published additional details.
The highway safety researchers estimated that cellphone use by drivers caused around 955 fatalities and 240,000 accidents over all in 2002.
The researchers also shelved a draft letter they had prepared for Transportation Secretary Norman Y. Mineta to send, warning states that hands-free laws might not solve the problem.
That letter said that hands-free headsets did not eliminate the serious accident risk. The reason: a cellphone conversation itself, not just holding the phone, takes drivers’ focus off the road, studies showed.
The research mirrors other studies about the dangers of multitasking behind the wheel. Research shows that motorists talking on a phone are four times as likely to crash as other drivers, and are as likely to cause an accident as someone with a .08 blood alcohol content.
"The lobbyists from the phone companies descended on us and lots of folks came in to voice their disapproval," Councilman Duke Bainum recalled yesterday. "It didn't even get out of committee."
But now, he added, "Many accidents and, unfortunately, lives later, we're at a point where the environment is completely different."
That was evident yesterday as the Council gave final approval to Bill 4, a measure to ban talking on a cell phone while driving unless a hands-free device is used.
[5/7/09] Starting July 1, Honolulu motorists will not be allowed to use hand-held cell phones and other electronic devices while driving, under a bill signed by Mayor Mufi Hannemann today.
[6/26/09, posted 7/7] New rules of the road
[6/29/09] It's about time for such a requirement, inadequate as it might be. More than 40 countries have such a law, along with four states and numerous municipalities. Twelve years have passed since a study published by the New England Journal of Medicine found that the risk of an accident while the driver is on a cell phone quadruples, about the same risk as driving drunk.
Not that a Bluetooth headset is any safer. Nearly eight years have passed since researchers at the University of Utah completed a study finding that hands-free phones are as distracting for motorists as hand-held cell phones.
[7/19/00] Extensive research shows the dangers of distracted driving. Studies say that drivers using phones are four times as likely to cause a crash as other drivers, and the likelihood that they will crash is equal to that of someone with a .08 percent blood alcohol level, the point at which drivers are generally considered intoxicated. Research also shows that hands-free devices do not eliminate the risks, and may worsen them by suggesting that the behavior is safe.
A 2003 Harvard study estimated that cellphone distractions caused 2,600 traffic deaths every year, and 330,000 accidents that result in moderate or severe injuries.
Yet Americans have largely ignored that research. Instead, they increasingly use phones, navigation devices and even laptops to turn their cars into mobile offices, chat rooms and entertainment centers, making roads more dangerous.
[7/22/09] In 2003, researchers at a federal agency proposed a long-term study of 10,000 drivers to assess the safety risk posed by cellphone use behind the wheel.
They sought the study based on evidence that such multitasking was a serious and growing threat on America’s roadways.
But such an ambitious study never happened. And the researchers’ agency, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, decided not to make public hundreds of pages of research and warnings about the use of phones by drivers — in part, officials say, because of concerns about angering Congress.
On Tuesday, the full body of research is being made public for the first time by two consumer advocacy groups, which filed a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit for the documents. The Center for Auto Safety and Public Citizen provided a copy to The New York Times, which is publishing the documents on its Web site.
In interviews, the officials who withheld the research offered their fullest explanation to date.
The former head of the highway safety agency said he was urged to withhold the research to avoid antagonizing members of Congress who had warned the agency to stick to its mission of gathering safety data but not to lobby states.
Critics say that rationale and the failure of the Transportation Department, which oversees the highway agency, to more vigorously pursue distracted driving has cost lives and allowed to blossom a culture of behind-the-wheel multitasking.
“We’re looking at a problem that could be as bad as drunk driving, and the government has covered it up,” said Clarence Ditlow, director of the Center for Auto Safety.
The group petitioned for the information after The Los Angeles Times wrote about the research last year. Mother Jones later published additional details.
The highway safety researchers estimated that cellphone use by drivers caused around 955 fatalities and 240,000 accidents over all in 2002.
The researchers also shelved a draft letter they had prepared for Transportation Secretary Norman Y. Mineta to send, warning states that hands-free laws might not solve the problem.
That letter said that hands-free headsets did not eliminate the serious accident risk. The reason: a cellphone conversation itself, not just holding the phone, takes drivers’ focus off the road, studies showed.
The research mirrors other studies about the dangers of multitasking behind the wheel. Research shows that motorists talking on a phone are four times as likely to crash as other drivers, and are as likely to cause an accident as someone with a .08 blood alcohol content.
Thursday, April 09, 2009
the last afternoon Star Bulletin
After more than 150 years, the Honolulu Star-Bulletin printed its final afternoon newspaper on Thursday.
The paper never missed an afternoon print in all of its years despite power outages, hurricanes and earthquakes.
Starting on Monday, the paper will convert from a standard "broadsheet" newspaper to a tabloid size, similar to the size of MidWeek.
The job cuts and suspension of the afternoon edition mirrors the newspaper troubles happening around the country. Many big-name newspapers such as the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Rocky Mountain News, Chicago Tribune and Philadelphia Inquirer are in bankruptcy, closed or transformed to an online entity.
* * *
Funny, I don't see the story on this at starbulletin.com, though it's on the front page of the printed edition.
* * *
[4/13/09] The new Star Bulletin
The paper never missed an afternoon print in all of its years despite power outages, hurricanes and earthquakes.
Starting on Monday, the paper will convert from a standard "broadsheet" newspaper to a tabloid size, similar to the size of MidWeek.
The job cuts and suspension of the afternoon edition mirrors the newspaper troubles happening around the country. Many big-name newspapers such as the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Rocky Mountain News, Chicago Tribune and Philadelphia Inquirer are in bankruptcy, closed or transformed to an online entity.
* * *
Funny, I don't see the story on this at starbulletin.com, though it's on the front page of the printed edition.
* * *
[4/13/09] The new Star Bulletin
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Obama “Gun Salesman of the Year”
In recognition of the unprecedented demand for firearms by nervous consumers, The Outdoor Wire, the nation’s largest daily electronic news service for the outdoor industry, has named President-elect Barack Obama its “Gun Salesman of the Year”. With the selection, Outdoor Wire publisher Jim Shepherd says it is time the firearms industry recognizes the fact that without President-elect Obama’s frightening consumers into action, the firearms industry might be suffering the same sort of business slumps that have befallen the automotive and housing industries.
“It’s credit where credit is due,” says Shepherd, “Mr. Obama has consistently voted against individual rights to firearms, appointed a re-tread Clinton administration full of gun banners, and made it plain to anti-gun groups that despite what he might say to the contrary, he’s on their side.” That history, along with the unquestioned support of anti-gun organizations, Shepherd says, has spooked consumers into a buying frenzy for firearms that could be outlawed in another Assault Weapons Ban.
[vis wstr75]
“It’s credit where credit is due,” says Shepherd, “Mr. Obama has consistently voted against individual rights to firearms, appointed a re-tread Clinton administration full of gun banners, and made it plain to anti-gun groups that despite what he might say to the contrary, he’s on their side.” That history, along with the unquestioned support of anti-gun organizations, Shepherd says, has spooked consumers into a buying frenzy for firearms that could be outlawed in another Assault Weapons Ban.
[vis wstr75]
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
court shuts down Superferry
Hawaii Superferry will cease operations and its future in the Islands is in doubt after the state Supreme Court ruled that a state law that saved the project two years ago is unconstitutional.
Hours after the ruling yesterday, Superferry contacted passengers who have booked travel between O'ahu and Maui to notify them of the situation. The Alakai will make one additional roundtrip between the two Islands on Thursday to return passengers and vehicles.
The court ruled that the law that allowed Superferry to operate during an environmental review is improper because it is a special law created just for Superferry.
Hours after the ruling yesterday, Superferry contacted passengers who have booked travel between O'ahu and Maui to notify them of the situation. The Alakai will make one additional roundtrip between the two Islands on Thursday to return passengers and vehicles.
The court ruled that the law that allowed Superferry to operate during an environmental review is improper because it is a special law created just for Superferry.
Thursday, March 05, 2009
Italy's no. 1 business
Revenue raked in by Italy’s mob surged 40 percent last year, turning crime into the nation’s No. 1 business, Eurispes said in its annual report.
Income increased to 130 billion euros ($167 billion), up from about 90 billion euros in 2007, according to figures supplied by Eurispes and SOS Impresa, an association of businessmen to protest against extortion. Drug trafficking remains the primary source of revenue, bringing in about 59 billion euros, and the mob earned 5.8 billion euros from selling arms, the Rome-based Eurispes research group said today.
“During a crisis, people lower their guard,” Roberto Saviano, who wrote the bestseller “Gomorrah” about the Camorra crime bosses, said in an interview. “Studies show the criminal market never suffers during a crisis. I’m convinced that this crisis is bringing huge advantages to criminal syndicates.”
“With people more desperate, loan sharks thrive,” Amedeo Vitagliano, an Italian crime expert at Eurispses, said in a telephone interview. “While the country is on its knees, the mob rejoices.”
Income increased to 130 billion euros ($167 billion), up from about 90 billion euros in 2007, according to figures supplied by Eurispes and SOS Impresa, an association of businessmen to protest against extortion. Drug trafficking remains the primary source of revenue, bringing in about 59 billion euros, and the mob earned 5.8 billion euros from selling arms, the Rome-based Eurispes research group said today.
“During a crisis, people lower their guard,” Roberto Saviano, who wrote the bestseller “Gomorrah” about the Camorra crime bosses, said in an interview. “Studies show the criminal market never suffers during a crisis. I’m convinced that this crisis is bringing huge advantages to criminal syndicates.”
“With people more desperate, loan sharks thrive,” Amedeo Vitagliano, an Italian crime expert at Eurispses, said in a telephone interview. “While the country is on its knees, the mob rejoices.”
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
U.S. troops to pull out of Iraq by 8/10
President Barack Obama is expected to order all U.S. combat troops to leave Iraq by August of next year, administration officials said, closing the door on a war that has led to the deaths of at least 4,250 members of the U.S. military.
The pullout recommended by Obama's security advisers would free up troops and resources for the war in Afghanistan, where Obama has said the threat to national security is acute. The Iraq withdrawal would be completed 18 months from now.
"We are now carefully reviewing our policies in both wars, and I will soon announce a way forward in Iraq that leaves Iraq to its people and responsibly ends this war," Obama said in his address to Congress on Tuesday.
The pullout recommended by Obama's security advisers would free up troops and resources for the war in Afghanistan, where Obama has said the threat to national security is acute. The Iraq withdrawal would be completed 18 months from now.
"We are now carefully reviewing our policies in both wars, and I will soon announce a way forward in Iraq that leaves Iraq to its people and responsibly ends this war," Obama said in his address to Congress on Tuesday.
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
This is Stimulus?
The Wall Street Journal takes a look at Obama's stimulus plan.
The 647-page, $825 billion House legislation is being sold as an economic "stimulus," but now that Democrats have finally released the details we understand Rahm's point much better. This is a political wonder that manages to spend money on just about every pent-up Democratic proposal of the last 40 years.
We've looked it over, and even we can't quite believe it. There's $1 billion for Amtrak, the federal railroad that hasn't turned a profit in 40 years; $2 billion for child-care subsidies; $50 million for that great engine of job creation, the National Endowment for the Arts; $400 million for global-warming research and another $2.4 billion for carbon-capture demonstration projects. There's even $650 million on top of the billions already doled out to pay for digital TV conversion coupons.
In selling the plan, President Obama has said this bill will make "dramatic investments to revive our flagging economy." Well, you be the judge. Some $30 billion, or less than 5% of the spending in the bill, is for fixing bridges or other highway projects. There's another $40 billion for broadband and electric grid development, airports and clean water projects that are arguably worthwhile priorities.
Add the roughly $20 billion for business tax cuts, and by our estimate only $90 billion out of $825 billion, or about 12 cents of every $1, is for something that can plausibly be considered a growth stimulus. And even many of these projects aren't likely to help the economy immediately. As Peter Orszag, the President's new budget director, told Congress a year ago, "even those [public works] that are 'on the shelf' generally cannot be undertaken quickly enough to provide timely stimulus to the economy."
[via valuhunt3r]
The 647-page, $825 billion House legislation is being sold as an economic "stimulus," but now that Democrats have finally released the details we understand Rahm's point much better. This is a political wonder that manages to spend money on just about every pent-up Democratic proposal of the last 40 years.
We've looked it over, and even we can't quite believe it. There's $1 billion for Amtrak, the federal railroad that hasn't turned a profit in 40 years; $2 billion for child-care subsidies; $50 million for that great engine of job creation, the National Endowment for the Arts; $400 million for global-warming research and another $2.4 billion for carbon-capture demonstration projects. There's even $650 million on top of the billions already doled out to pay for digital TV conversion coupons.
In selling the plan, President Obama has said this bill will make "dramatic investments to revive our flagging economy." Well, you be the judge. Some $30 billion, or less than 5% of the spending in the bill, is for fixing bridges or other highway projects. There's another $40 billion for broadband and electric grid development, airports and clean water projects that are arguably worthwhile priorities.
Add the roughly $20 billion for business tax cuts, and by our estimate only $90 billion out of $825 billion, or about 12 cents of every $1, is for something that can plausibly be considered a growth stimulus. And even many of these projects aren't likely to help the economy immediately. As Peter Orszag, the President's new budget director, told Congress a year ago, "even those [public works] that are 'on the shelf' generally cannot be undertaken quickly enough to provide timely stimulus to the economy."
[via valuhunt3r]
Thursday, January 22, 2009
The Inheritance
An interesting interview on Charlie Rose with New York Times correspondent David Sanger author of The Inheritance on the problems that Obama will take over from Bush.
[2/18/09 -- see also Obama's Challenge]
[2/18/09 -- see also Obama's Challenge]
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
stimulus too slow?
It will take years before an infrastructure spending program proposed by President-elect Barack Obama will boost the economy, according to congressional economists.
The findings, released to lawmakers Sunday, call into question the effectiveness of congressional Democrats' efforts to pump up the economy through old-fashioned public works projects like roads, bridges and repairs of public housing.
Less than half of the $30 billion in highway construction funds detailed by House Democrats would be released into the economy over the next four years, concludes the analysis by the Congressional Budget Office. Less than $4 billion in highway construction money would reach the economy by September 2010.
The economy has been in recession for more than a year, but many economists believe a recovery may begin by the end of 2009. That would mean that most of the infrastructure money wouldn't hit the economy until it's already on the mend.
The findings, released to lawmakers Sunday, call into question the effectiveness of congressional Democrats' efforts to pump up the economy through old-fashioned public works projects like roads, bridges and repairs of public housing.
Less than half of the $30 billion in highway construction funds detailed by House Democrats would be released into the economy over the next four years, concludes the analysis by the Congressional Budget Office. Less than $4 billion in highway construction money would reach the economy by September 2010.
The economy has been in recession for more than a year, but many economists believe a recovery may begin by the end of 2009. That would mean that most of the infrastructure money wouldn't hit the economy until it's already on the mend.
Obama inaugurated at 44th President
Barack Obama delivered a sobering assessment of where America stands and a hopeful vision of what it can become during his inaugural address as the nation's 44th president.
"Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real. They are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time," Obama told those gathered on the National Mall -- a crowd estimated at about 2 million -- and millions more watching on television and the Internet.
"But know this, America -- they will be met," he said.
"Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real. They are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time," Obama told those gathered on the National Mall -- a crowd estimated at about 2 million -- and millions more watching on television and the Internet.
"But know this, America -- they will be met," he said.
Sunday, January 18, 2009
I Can See Russia From My House
Sarah Palin lost the election, but she's a winner to a connoisseur of quotations. The Republican US vice presidential candidate and her comedic doppelganger, Tina Fey, took the top two spots in this year's list of most memorable quotes compiled by Fred R Shapiro.
First place was "I can see Russia from my house!" spoken in satire of Palin's foreign policy credentials by Fey on Saturday Night Live.
Palin actual quote was: "They're our next-door neighbours and you can actually see Russia from land here in Alaska, from an island in Alaska."
Palin also made the third annual list for her inability to name newspapers she reads. When questioned by CBS anchor Katie Couric, Palin said she reads "all of them, any of them that have been in front of me over all these years".
First place was "I can see Russia from my house!" spoken in satire of Palin's foreign policy credentials by Fey on Saturday Night Live.
Palin actual quote was: "They're our next-door neighbours and you can actually see Russia from land here in Alaska, from an island in Alaska."
Palin also made the third annual list for her inability to name newspapers she reads. When questioned by CBS anchor Katie Couric, Palin said she reads "all of them, any of them that have been in front of me over all these years".
Monday, January 12, 2009
The final news conference of George W. Bush
WASHINGTON (AP) — In a nostalgic final news conference, President George W. Bush defended his record vigorously and at times sentimentally Monday. He also admitted many mistakes, from the "Mission Accomplished" banner during a 2003 Iraq speech to the discovery that the alleged Iraqi weapons of mass destruction that he used to justify war didn't exist.
Wednesday, January 07, 2009
lunch with the presidents
WASHINGTON (AP) — President-elect Barack Obama hailed a rare Oval Office gathering of all U.S. presidents as an extraordinary event on Wednesday as the current occupant, President George W. Bush, reminded his predecessors and successor that the office "transcends the individual."
"I just want to thank the president for hosting us," the president-elect said, flanked by former President George H.W. Bush on one side and his son on the other.
Presidents Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter, both smiling broadly, stood with them.
"All the gentlemen here understand both the pressures and possibilities of this office," Obama said. "For me to have the opportunity to get advice, good counsel and fellowship with these individuals is extraordinary."
In a swift photo opportunity, the current president wished Obama well before all five men headed to a private lunch.
"I want to thank the president-elect for joining the ex-presidents for lunch," Bush said, even though he's not quite a member of that club yet.
"One message that I have and I think we all share is that we want you to succeed. Whether we're Democrat or Republican we care deeply about this country," Bush said. "All of us who have served in this office understand that the office itself transcends the individual."
He added: "We wish you all the very best, and so does the country."
Bush and Obama also met privately for roughly 30 minutes. That one-on-one meeting, coming just 13 days before Obama's inauguration, likely focused on grim current events, with war in the Gaza Strip and the economy in a recession.
"I just want to thank the president for hosting us," the president-elect said, flanked by former President George H.W. Bush on one side and his son on the other.
Presidents Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter, both smiling broadly, stood with them.
"All the gentlemen here understand both the pressures and possibilities of this office," Obama said. "For me to have the opportunity to get advice, good counsel and fellowship with these individuals is extraordinary."
In a swift photo opportunity, the current president wished Obama well before all five men headed to a private lunch.
"I want to thank the president-elect for joining the ex-presidents for lunch," Bush said, even though he's not quite a member of that club yet.
"One message that I have and I think we all share is that we want you to succeed. Whether we're Democrat or Republican we care deeply about this country," Bush said. "All of us who have served in this office understand that the office itself transcends the individual."
He added: "We wish you all the very best, and so does the country."
Bush and Obama also met privately for roughly 30 minutes. That one-on-one meeting, coming just 13 days before Obama's inauguration, likely focused on grim current events, with war in the Gaza Strip and the economy in a recession.
Tuesday, January 06, 2009
Afghanistan signs cluster bomb treaty
In a last-minute change, President Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan agreed on Wednesday to join some 90 other nations signing a treaty banning the use of the cluster munitions that have devastated his country in recent years.
The decision appeared to reflect Mr. Karzai’s growing independence from the Bush administration, which has opposed the treaty and, according to a senior Afghan official who spoke on the condition of anonymity following diplomatic protocol, had urged Mr. Karzai not to sign it.
“Until this morning, Afghanistan was not going to be a signatory,” said Jawed Ludin, Afghanistan’s ambassador to the Scandinavian countries and the leader of its delegation here. He said the president’s change of heart came as a result of pressure by human rights organizations and cluster-bomb victims, including Soraj Ghulam Habib, a 17-year-old from the city of Herat who lost both legs when he accidentally stepped on an explosive cluster remnant seven years ago.
Mr. Ludin’s announcement was greeted by raucous cheers in Oslo’s City Hall, where the signing ceremony began Wednesday after two years of diplomatic work by Norway. By the end of the day, more than 90 nations — including 18 of 26 NATO members — had signed the treaty, called the Convention on Cluster Munitions, which bars adherents from using, producing, selling or stockpiling cluster munitions.
Norway’s foreign minister, Jonas Gahr Stoere, said he expected several more nations to sign on Thursday. Among them, however, will not be the United States, Russia, China, India, Pakistan or several Middle Eastern nations. But Mr. Gahr Stoere said universal compliance was not necessary for the cluster-bomb treaty to work.
In recent months, Mr. Karzai has sharpened his public criticisms of the American mission in Afghanistan. He has spoken out against aerial bombings and other operations by the American-led forces in the country that have caused civilian casualties, offended cultural sensitivities and undermined popular support for the war that routed the Taliban in late 2001.
While several Afghan officials interviewed Wednesday said that the United States did not publicly press the Afghans to reject the treaty, an official in the Karzai administration said that throughout the process that led to the treaty, the Americans made it clear “that they would prefer that Afghanistan stay out of it.”
The United States has not used any cluster bombs since 2003, said Marc Garlasco, a senior military analyst for Human Right Watch, who was at the event in Oslo. A NATO policy banning the use of cluster munitions in Afghanistan has been in place since 2007.
American officials said the United States would continue pursuing measured restrictions on the use of cluster bombs by trying to amend the 1980 United Nations convention on conventional weapons. The members of that treaty include Russia, China and most of the others that have refused to sign the Oslo treaty.
The decision appeared to reflect Mr. Karzai’s growing independence from the Bush administration, which has opposed the treaty and, according to a senior Afghan official who spoke on the condition of anonymity following diplomatic protocol, had urged Mr. Karzai not to sign it.
“Until this morning, Afghanistan was not going to be a signatory,” said Jawed Ludin, Afghanistan’s ambassador to the Scandinavian countries and the leader of its delegation here. He said the president’s change of heart came as a result of pressure by human rights organizations and cluster-bomb victims, including Soraj Ghulam Habib, a 17-year-old from the city of Herat who lost both legs when he accidentally stepped on an explosive cluster remnant seven years ago.
Mr. Ludin’s announcement was greeted by raucous cheers in Oslo’s City Hall, where the signing ceremony began Wednesday after two years of diplomatic work by Norway. By the end of the day, more than 90 nations — including 18 of 26 NATO members — had signed the treaty, called the Convention on Cluster Munitions, which bars adherents from using, producing, selling or stockpiling cluster munitions.
Norway’s foreign minister, Jonas Gahr Stoere, said he expected several more nations to sign on Thursday. Among them, however, will not be the United States, Russia, China, India, Pakistan or several Middle Eastern nations. But Mr. Gahr Stoere said universal compliance was not necessary for the cluster-bomb treaty to work.
In recent months, Mr. Karzai has sharpened his public criticisms of the American mission in Afghanistan. He has spoken out against aerial bombings and other operations by the American-led forces in the country that have caused civilian casualties, offended cultural sensitivities and undermined popular support for the war that routed the Taliban in late 2001.
While several Afghan officials interviewed Wednesday said that the United States did not publicly press the Afghans to reject the treaty, an official in the Karzai administration said that throughout the process that led to the treaty, the Americans made it clear “that they would prefer that Afghanistan stay out of it.”
The United States has not used any cluster bombs since 2003, said Marc Garlasco, a senior military analyst for Human Right Watch, who was at the event in Oslo. A NATO policy banning the use of cluster munitions in Afghanistan has been in place since 2007.
American officials said the United States would continue pursuing measured restrictions on the use of cluster bombs by trying to amend the 1980 United Nations convention on conventional weapons. The members of that treaty include Russia, China and most of the others that have refused to sign the Oslo treaty.
Monday, January 05, 2009
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
attacks in Mumbai
MUMBAI, India - Teams of gunmen stormed luxury hotels, a popular restaurant, a crowded train station and a Jewish center, killing at least 101 people and holding Westerners hostage in coordinated attacks on India's commercial center that were blamed on Muslim militants. Dozens of people were still trapped or held captive Thursday.
Police and gunmen were exchanging occasional gunfire at two luxury hotels and dozens of people were believed held hostage or trapped inside the besieged buildings. Pradeep Indulkar, a senior official at the Maharashtra state Home Ministry, said 101 people were killed and 314 injured.
Police and gunmen were exchanging occasional gunfire at two luxury hotels and dozens of people were believed held hostage or trapped inside the besieged buildings. Pradeep Indulkar, a senior official at the Maharashtra state Home Ministry, said 101 people were killed and 314 injured.
Friday, December 19, 2008
George Bush, shoe salesman
The shoe hurled at President George W. Bush has sent sales soaring at the Turkish maker as orders pour in from Iraq, the US and Iran.
The brown, thick-soled “Model 271” may soon be renamed “The Bush Shoe” or “Bye-Bye Bush,” said Ramazan Baydan, who owns the Istanbul-based producer Baydan Ayakkabicilik San. & Tic.
“We’ve been selling these shoes for years but, thanks to Bush, orders are flying in like crazy,” he said in a telephone interview. “We’ve even hired an agency to look at television advertising.”
[12/19/08, posted 1/16/09]
The brown, thick-soled “Model 271” may soon be renamed “The Bush Shoe” or “Bye-Bye Bush,” said Ramazan Baydan, who owns the Istanbul-based producer Baydan Ayakkabicilik San. & Tic.
“We’ve been selling these shoes for years but, thanks to Bush, orders are flying in like crazy,” he said in a telephone interview. “We’ve even hired an agency to look at television advertising.”
[12/19/08, posted 1/16/09]
Monday, December 15, 2008
Bush ducks shoe
President George W. Bush ducked a pair of shoes hurled at his head — one shoe after the other — in the middle of a news conference with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.
Both shoes narrowly missed their target and thumped loudly against the wall behind the leaders.
"Don't worry about it," the president said as the room erupted into chaos.
Iraqi reporters started shouting what Bush later explained were apologies for the incident.
[posted 1/7/09]
Both shoes narrowly missed their target and thumped loudly against the wall behind the leaders.
"Don't worry about it," the president said as the room erupted into chaos.
Iraqi reporters started shouting what Bush later explained were apologies for the incident.
[posted 1/7/09]
Obama and McCain discuss football
The bitter general election campaign behind them, President-elect Barack Obama and Republican Sen. John McCain met Monday to discuss ways to work together in the future.
The two former rivals met in Obama's transition headquarters in Chicago. Obama said before the meeting that he and McCain planned "a good conversation about how we can do some work together to fix up the country, and also to offer thanks to Sen. McCain for the outstanding service he's already rendered."
Obama and McCain sat together for a brief picture-taking moment with reporters, along with Rahm Emanuel, Obama's incoming White House chief of staff, and South Carolina Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham, McCain's close friend. Obama and McCain were heard briefly discussing football, and Obama cracked that "the national press is tame compared to the Chicago press."
When asked if he planned to help the Obama administration, McCain replied, "Obviously."
The two former rivals met in Obama's transition headquarters in Chicago. Obama said before the meeting that he and McCain planned "a good conversation about how we can do some work together to fix up the country, and also to offer thanks to Sen. McCain for the outstanding service he's already rendered."
Obama and McCain sat together for a brief picture-taking moment with reporters, along with Rahm Emanuel, Obama's incoming White House chief of staff, and South Carolina Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham, McCain's close friend. Obama and McCain were heard briefly discussing football, and Obama cracked that "the national press is tame compared to the Chicago press."
When asked if he planned to help the Obama administration, McCain replied, "Obviously."
Wednesday, December 03, 2008
Hawaii to charge up cars?
By 2012, Hawaii is poised to become a national leader in electric car use under an ambitious plan announced yesterday by Gov. Linda Lingle.
Palo Alto, Calif.-based Better Place has proposed a $1 billion plan to be funded through private investments that would include up to 100,000 charging stations around Hawaii and possible state incentives for thousands of electric car buyers to be rolled out in the next several years.
It is the first statewide project of its kind, and follows a similar outlay announced last month in San Francisco.
* * *
[5/13/09] Better Place of Palo Alto, Calif., the company with an ambitious $1 billion plan to launch a mass-market electric vehicle system in Hawaii, is feeling optimistic these days.
Besides the passage of key bills by the state Legislature and the governor's support, Better Place unveiled yesterday its first demonstration model of an electric car charging spot and battery-swapping station, in Yokohama, Japan.
"I'm excited about what this means for Hawaii," said Pete Cooper, of Better Place Hawaii. "This technology moves us closer to realizing the environmental and economic benefits of electrical vehicles : clean transportation using our state's natural, renewable sources of energy instead of imported fossil fuels."
As envisioned, Hawaii would be home to at least 3,000 electric cars in 2010 and 50,400 in 2015. By then the isles also would be outfitted with a network of up to 100,000 charging stations powered by renewable energy sources.
Palo Alto, Calif.-based Better Place has proposed a $1 billion plan to be funded through private investments that would include up to 100,000 charging stations around Hawaii and possible state incentives for thousands of electric car buyers to be rolled out in the next several years.
It is the first statewide project of its kind, and follows a similar outlay announced last month in San Francisco.
* * *
[5/13/09] Better Place of Palo Alto, Calif., the company with an ambitious $1 billion plan to launch a mass-market electric vehicle system in Hawaii, is feeling optimistic these days.
Besides the passage of key bills by the state Legislature and the governor's support, Better Place unveiled yesterday its first demonstration model of an electric car charging spot and battery-swapping station, in Yokohama, Japan.
"I'm excited about what this means for Hawaii," said Pete Cooper, of Better Place Hawaii. "This technology moves us closer to realizing the environmental and economic benefits of electrical vehicles : clean transportation using our state's natural, renewable sources of energy instead of imported fossil fuels."
As envisioned, Hawaii would be home to at least 3,000 electric cars in 2010 and 50,400 in 2015. By then the isles also would be outfitted with a network of up to 100,000 charging stations powered by renewable energy sources.
Tuesday, December 02, 2008
The issues
PARADE has boiled down the candidates' stands on various key issues from their many speeches, debates, and position papers. Note that when we say a candidate "would" do something, it reflects a promise, not a guarantee.
Monday, December 01, 2008
Obama selects national security team
President-elect Barack Obama called for “a new dawn of American leadership” on Monday as he formally introduced his national security team, led by Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton as his nominee for secretary of state.
“We will strengthen our capacity to defeat our enemies and support our friends,” Mr. Obama said in Chicago. “We will renew old alliances and forge new and enduring partnerships.”
The new president said he was sticking to his goal of removing American combat troops from Iraq within 16 months, which he called “the right time frame,” and that this would be accomplished with safety for the troops and security for the Iraqi people.
He introduced his team one by one, starting with Senator Clinton, his former bitter rival for the Democratic presidential nomination; then Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates, who will stay on, at least for a time, in the new administration; Gen. James L. Jones, the former NATO commander, to be national security adviser; Gov. Janet Napolitano of Arizona to be secretary of homeland security: Susan E. Rice to be ambassador to the United Nations, and Eric H. Holder Jr. to be attorney general.
“We will strengthen our capacity to defeat our enemies and support our friends,” Mr. Obama said in Chicago. “We will renew old alliances and forge new and enduring partnerships.”
The new president said he was sticking to his goal of removing American combat troops from Iraq within 16 months, which he called “the right time frame,” and that this would be accomplished with safety for the troops and security for the Iraqi people.
He introduced his team one by one, starting with Senator Clinton, his former bitter rival for the Democratic presidential nomination; then Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates, who will stay on, at least for a time, in the new administration; Gen. James L. Jones, the former NATO commander, to be national security adviser; Gov. Janet Napolitano of Arizona to be secretary of homeland security: Susan E. Rice to be ambassador to the United Nations, and Eric H. Holder Jr. to be attorney general.
Sunday, November 30, 2008
Karzai demands U.S. stop killing civilians
President Hamid Karzai has made an immediate demand of President-elect Barack Obama to prevent civilian casualties.
Kandahar province villager Abdul Jalil says he was hosting a wedding party for his niece when Taliban militants fighting U.S. forces took cover near his home. Jalil says 37 people were killed when U.S. warplanes later bombed the wedding party.
No Afghan officials could immediately confirm the number of casualties, which happened in a remote and dangerous part of Kandahar province. But Karzai referred to the incident at a news conference Wednesday held to congratulate Obama on his U.S. presidential election victory.
Karzai said he hopes the election will "bring peace to Afghanistan, life to Afghanistan and prosperity to the Afghan people and the rest of the world." He applauded America for its "courage" in electing Obama.
But he also used the occasion to immediately press Obama to find a way to prevent civilians casualties in operations by foreign forces. He then said airstrikes had caused deaths in the Shah Wali Kot district of Kandahar province.
"Our demand is that there will be no civilian casualties in Afghanistan. We cannot win the fight against terrorism with airstrikes," Karzai said. "This is my first demand of the new president of the United States - to put an end to civilian casualties."
The U.S. military says it is investigating the reports but a spokesman said "if innocent people were killed in this operation, we apologize and express our condolences."
The alleged airstrikes come only three months after the Afghan government found that a U.S. operation killed some 90 civilians in western Afghanistan. A U.S. report said 33 civilians died in that attack.
Kandahar province villager Abdul Jalil says he was hosting a wedding party for his niece when Taliban militants fighting U.S. forces took cover near his home. Jalil says 37 people were killed when U.S. warplanes later bombed the wedding party.
No Afghan officials could immediately confirm the number of casualties, which happened in a remote and dangerous part of Kandahar province. But Karzai referred to the incident at a news conference Wednesday held to congratulate Obama on his U.S. presidential election victory.
Karzai said he hopes the election will "bring peace to Afghanistan, life to Afghanistan and prosperity to the Afghan people and the rest of the world." He applauded America for its "courage" in electing Obama.
But he also used the occasion to immediately press Obama to find a way to prevent civilians casualties in operations by foreign forces. He then said airstrikes had caused deaths in the Shah Wali Kot district of Kandahar province.
"Our demand is that there will be no civilian casualties in Afghanistan. We cannot win the fight against terrorism with airstrikes," Karzai said. "This is my first demand of the new president of the United States - to put an end to civilian casualties."
The U.S. military says it is investigating the reports but a spokesman said "if innocent people were killed in this operation, we apologize and express our condolences."
The alleged airstrikes come only three months after the Afghan government found that a U.S. operation killed some 90 civilians in western Afghanistan. A U.S. report said 33 civilians died in that attack.
Friday, November 21, 2008
new cars being warehoused
Gleaming new Mercedes cars roll one by one out of a huge container ship here and onto a pier. Ordinarily the cars would be loaded on trucks within hours, destined for dealerships around the country. But these are not ordinary times.
For now, the port itself is the destination. Unwelcome by dealers and buyers, thousands of cars worth tens of millions of dollars are being warehoused on increasingly crowded port property.
[via chucks_angels]
For now, the port itself is the destination. Unwelcome by dealers and buyers, thousands of cars worth tens of millions of dollars are being warehoused on increasingly crowded port property.
[via chucks_angels]
Friday, November 14, 2008
Obama's challenge
Obama will soon face the problem of beginning to disappoint people all over the world, a problem built into his job.
... his Achilles' heel, as it was for Bush and for many presidents, will be foreign policy. He has made what appear to be three guarantees. First, he will withdraw from Iraq. Second, he will focus on Afghanistan. Third, he will oppose Russian expansionism. To deliver on the first promise, he must deal with the Iranians. To deliver on the second, he must deal with the Taliban. To deliver on the third, he must deal with the Europeans.
[2/18/09 -- see also The New President and the Global Landscape]
... his Achilles' heel, as it was for Bush and for many presidents, will be foreign policy. He has made what appear to be three guarantees. First, he will withdraw from Iraq. Second, he will focus on Afghanistan. Third, he will oppose Russian expansionism. To deliver on the first promise, he must deal with the Iranians. To deliver on the second, he must deal with the Taliban. To deliver on the third, he must deal with the Europeans.
[2/18/09 -- see also The New President and the Global Landscape]
Tuesday, November 04, 2008
Barack Obama elected President of the United States of America
Barack Obama, a 47-year-old first-term senator from Illinois, shattered more than 200 years of history Tuesday night by winning election as the first African-American president of the United States.
"The road ahead will be long. Our climb will be steep. We may not get there in one year or even one term, but America -- I have never been more hopeful than I am tonight that we will get there. I promise you -- we as a people will get there," Obama said in Chicago, Illinois.
Obama said he was looking forward to working with Sen. John McCain and Gov. Sarah Palin "to renew this nation's promise in the months ahead."
McCain on Tuesday urged all Americans to join him in congratulating Sen. Barack Obama on his projected victory in the presidential election.
"I pledge to him tonight to do all in my power to help him lead us through the many challenges we face," McCain said before his supporters in Phoenix, Arizona.
McCain called Obama to congratulate him, Obama's campaign said.
Obama thanked McCain for his graciousness and said he had waged a tough race.
President Bush also called Obama to congratulate him.
Bush told Obama he was about to begin one of the great journeys of his life, and invited him to visit the White House as soon as it could be arranged, according to White House spokeswoman Dana Perino.
With his projected win, Obama will become the nation's 44th president and its first African-American leader.
"The road ahead will be long. Our climb will be steep. We may not get there in one year or even one term, but America -- I have never been more hopeful than I am tonight that we will get there. I promise you -- we as a people will get there," Obama said in Chicago, Illinois.
Obama said he was looking forward to working with Sen. John McCain and Gov. Sarah Palin "to renew this nation's promise in the months ahead."
McCain on Tuesday urged all Americans to join him in congratulating Sen. Barack Obama on his projected victory in the presidential election.
"I pledge to him tonight to do all in my power to help him lead us through the many challenges we face," McCain said before his supporters in Phoenix, Arizona.
McCain called Obama to congratulate him, Obama's campaign said.
Obama thanked McCain for his graciousness and said he had waged a tough race.
President Bush also called Obama to congratulate him.
Bush told Obama he was about to begin one of the great journeys of his life, and invited him to visit the White House as soon as it could be arranged, according to White House spokeswoman Dana Perino.
With his projected win, Obama will become the nation's 44th president and its first African-American leader.
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