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BLOG'a'Boulder
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Dispatches from Boulder the Damned
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Saturday, May 10, 2008
Hezbollah forces are taking over large swathes of Beirut. The takeover came after three days of sectarian fighting in Beirut between Sunni militias and Hezollah and its Shiite allies. Hezbollah also shut down a rival television station and newspaper; 11 people have died so far in the fighting. And the country's security forces, which Washington has supported to the tune of $400 million? They've "largely stood aside," the Post says. They did do this, however: "The army had issued a statement saying the fighting had compromised its unity." Hezbollah helpfully handed control of some of the government offices it seized on Friday to the army. Money well spent.
The jury is still out on what it all means. "It was not yet clear what Friday's events would mean for Lebanon's political future, or how Hezbollah's show of force might translate into a corresponding political advantage," the NYT says. But the paper also quotes one local analyst: "They want the government to resign. This is effectively a coup." The WSJ is blunt, saying the takeover signals "a dramatic shift in power in the country: The U.S.-backed government of Lebanon isn't in charge anymore." I'm sorry, apparently I missed when it was. An analyst quoted by the LAT has a different take, saying that Hezbollah is not likely to continue its surge or even continue to hold the parts of Beirut it just seized. "Instead, the offensive was an 'object lesson' meant to demonstrate the group's ability to quickly subdue its domestic rivals without exposing its arsenal of heavy weapons meant to target Israel in a potential war."
Both Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton ahead of John McCain in head-to-head matchups. The same LAT poll showed McCain beating both in February; the paper attributes the Democrats' rising fortunes to the falling economy—voters see McCain as the least able of the three to manage that. In a hypothetical matchup, the poll gave Obama 46 percent to McCain's 40 percent and Clinton 47-38 over McCain. In February, McCain led Clinton by six and Obama by two. Among voters who say the economy is in a recession—78 percent of those polled—both of the Democrats lead McCain by 20 points.
McCain could be facing even more trouble: The LAT checks in with Bob Barr, the former congressman who is mulling a run for president as a libertarian, worrying some Republicans who think he could be a Nader of the right. And while Obama keeps accumulating superdelegates, John Edwards may or may not have let slip that he voted for Obama on Tuesday, the NYT finds.
The New York Times leads with high gas prices pushing more commuters to use public transportation, and this jump to public transportation is especially pronounced in cities with relatively strong driving cultures, like Denver, Minneapolis, Seattle, Dallas-Fort Worth, and San Francisco. Even cities of less than 100,000 are seeing big spikes in bus ridership. The increases are all the more remarkable because they are taking place in a poor economy, which usually means fewer people using public transportation.
Grim situation in Burma/Myanmar. The LAT saw ships in the country's main port being loaded with rice being exported to Bangladesh, while the government was handing out rotting stores of rice to citizens affected by the storm, and now they're slapping the names of generals on the relief boxes. The Washington Post (which did not have a Burma dateline) took a political approach, going high with the Burmese government's announcement that it would admit U.S. military flights bringing aid but that there was still disagreement over who would distribute foreign aid: Yesterday, the Burmese authorities commandeered two planeloads of U.N.-donated food and equipment and refused to allow in international aid officials. U.N. officials said they will not provide aid without having people on the ground to monitor its distribution.
"This is a regime that is extremely nationalistic—their whole ideology is about how they are a strong government that is protecting the country and holding the country together," said one expert quoted in the Post. "Accepting aid would be an implicit admission that they cannot deal with the problems of the country … What they are seeing here is a threat to their entire raison d'etre—their whole house of cards falling down."
In history, this day in 1768, the imprisonment of the journalist John Wilkes as an outlaw provoked violence in London. Wilkes was returned to parliament as a member for Middlesex. Wilkes liked ribald poetry, but was a good voice for the colonies. In 1773, same day, the English Parliament passed the Tea Act, which taxed all tea in the U.S. colonies, and the fuse was lit. A year to the day later, Louis XVI ascended the throne of France, putting all players in place.
And, the year after in 1775, Ethan Allen and Colonel Benedict Arnold led an attack on the British Fort Ticonderoga and captured it from the British.
This day in 1840, Mormon leader Joseph Smith moved his band of followers to Illinois to escape the hostilities they had experienced in Missouri.
In 1857, the Seepoys of India revolted against the British Army.
On this day in 1869, Central Pacific and Union Pacific Rail Roads meet at Promontory Point, Utah. A golden spike was driven in at the celebration of the first transcontinental railroad in the U.S.
On May 10, 1924, Attorney General Harlan Fiske Stone selected J. Edgar Hoover to head the Bureau of Investigation, later known as the FBI. He will remain at the post until his death 48 years later.
In 1927, the Hotel Statler in Boston became the first hotel to install radio headsets in each of its 1,300 rooms. In the 1950's, I still thought it pretty neat.
This day in 1933, Joseph Göbbels presided over a public book burning in Berlin, which destroyed more than 20,000 volumes. The collection includes books by Einstein and Freud. During the burn, Goebbels declared: "We have directed our dealings against the un-German spirit; consign everything un-German to the fire." The Nazis staged more massive public book burnings in Germany. In 1940, same day, they invaded Belgium, France, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg.
A year later, England's House of Commons was destroyed by a German air raid. Up in Scotland, running out of fuel and unable to find a suitable spot to land his Messerschmitt, Deputy Fuhrer Rudolf Hess bailed out. When Hess claimed to have made the trip in order to negotiate a peace treaty with England, the Hitler declared that he was a psychotic who "lived in a state of hallucination." After the war, Hess is confined to Spandau Prison until his apparent suicide in 1987.
In 1942, Dugout Doug having left them, U.S. forces in the Philippines began to surrender to the Japanese.
In 1993, in the worst manufacturing plant fire in history, 188 employees, most young women, burned to death in a doll factory in Bangkok. The management had locked the doors, so the workers could produce their Bart Simpson dolls without any distractions.
In 1999, the Cezanne painting "Still Life With Curtain, Pitcher and Bowl of Fruit" sold for 60.5 million.
In 2001, in Ghana, 121 people were killed in a stampede at a soccer game.
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Friday, May 09, 2008
The United Nations' increasing pressure on Burmese officials to drop all restrictions and allow relief workers and aid to enter the country isn't working. What aid has arrive, the junta collected. It's now been almost a week since Cyclone Nargis devastated Burma on Saturday, but emergency supplies continue to trickle in at an unacceptable pace as the military junta is adamant that it won't cede control over the relief efforts, although it allowed the first U.N. aid shipments to enter the country. "They have simply not facilitated access in the way we have a right to expect," the U.N. official in charge of the relief effort said.
Two U.N. transport planes full of relief supplies finally reached Burma yesterday, but no one thinks that's anywhere close to what's needed to assist the estimated 1.5 million survivors. Defense Secretary Robert Gates described how U.S. military transport planes and helicopters are in Thailand just waiting for the go-ahead to begin delivering aid, but the Burmese government has yet to approve their entry. The Post points out that one of the U.N. planes that arrived in Burma yesterday "had sat for two days in Dubai … waiting for clearance." The WSJ devotes a separate story inside to a look at how the Bush administration and aid groups are "examining radical solutions" that include "air drops, border deliveries and helicopter landings." But some warn that such unilateral action will only make things worse.
The United Nations says several disaster experts haven't been allowed inside Burma, and they're also just waiting around in Thailand. It seems Burmese authorities want to pick who can go into the country and who can't and are favoring aid workers from Asian countries while denying entrance to others. "I've never seen an emergency situation such as this before," the regional director of the International Rescue Committee said. "A week after the disaster, the entire humanitarian community is still sitting in another country." The NYT talks to some experts who say the Burmese government is reluctant to receive foreign help because it would prove that it can't take care of its own people. "The disaster has demonstrated that their omniscient power has been greatly exaggerated," one said.
It becomes more likely that the death toll will continue to increase, and there's the very real risk that epidemics of disease will break out. By all accounts, the situation is nothing short of desperate. Staff writers from the LAT and NYT managed to get into the country and file dispatches from Rangoon, Burma's biggest city, where the death toll was relatively small but the destruction caused by the cyclone is still plainly evident, as residents struggle to pick up the pieces. The fact that the government hasn't managed "to clear debris and restore basic services like water and power in what is the country's wealthiest city" is an illustration of how slow the recovery process will be, says the NYT. Unlike Katrina. The LAT reports that "five days later, a semblance of normality was returning" to the city but says residents now have to pay "exorbitant prices for bare essentials." The WP fronts a dispatch written by a freelance journalist from the "midpoint of the storm's path across the delta," where survivors are struggling to stay alive. Although a few aid groups are working in the area, food remains scarce, and Burmese soldiers and police officers appeared more interested in operating checkpoints than carrying out relief operations.
Barack Obama has begun an effort to unify the Democratic Party behind his candidacy, even as Sen. Hillary Clinton continued to campaign and insist she has a better chance of winning the November election. I'm not sure but she isn't right.
Even as Obama said yesterday that he's likely to win a majority of pledged delegates after Kentucky and Oregon vote on May 20, he's not publicly calling for Clinton to step down from the contest. It seems his campaign is being careful not to make it seem like Obama is trying to push Clinton to quit since he will need the backing of her supporters in November. The chairman of the Clinton campaign suggested yesterday that Clinton won't take the fight to the nomination when he said that "after June 3, this is going to come to a conclusion." The Post's Dan Balz says that while it's possible that Clinton might end her campaign early due to lack of funds, the most likely scenario is that she won't officially drop out until the undecided superdelegates move into the Obama column after June 3.
Not good and overdue overdue coverage of McCain. The WP looks at how McCain pushed a land swap deal through Congress that will "directly benefit" one of his top fundraisers. After approval of the legislation, which will allow an Arizona businessman to exchange remote land for valuable property owned by the federal government, SunCor Development was hired to build thousands of homes in the area. SunCor Development is run by Steven Betts, a longtime McCain supporter who has raised more than $100,000 for the Arizona Republican's presidential race. Betts denies he ever talked to McCain about it, but besides that connection, there are plenty of other eyebrow-raising aspects to the deal. McCain wasn't very eager to support the swap at first, but that all appeared to change after the businessman who owned the remote land hired a group of lobbyists that included several people who once worked for McCain. Some have also criticized the legislation, saying that the federal government got a raw deal. This isn't the first time that land swaps pushed through by McCain have come under scrutiny because they benefitted campaign contributors. Last month, the NYT took a look at how McCain has sponsored legislation that helped a wealthy Arizona businessman, who has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for the senator, get millions of dollars from the federal government in complex land exchanges.
"It's clear who Hamas wants to be the next President." Or so says Straight Shooter John McCain on Obama's candidacy. If so, Hamas is pretty stupid, but an adult would know that.
There's new data showing that an increasing number of prime borrowers are falling behind on their mortgage payments and that foreclosures are on the rise. Although the numbers are still small and the problem is nowhere near as severe as in the subprime market, if they increase further, it "could prolong the housing crisis."
The national coordinator of Mexico's efforts to wage war against organized crime was killed in his home by an assassin. Imagine the coverage if he'd been Canadian. Sources tell the paper that the so-called Sinaloa cartel was responsible for the death of Edgar Milan Gomez, who was the country's third-ranking police official.
In the fun packed Middle East, we're in the second day of open street battles in Beirut between supporters of the Lebanese government and Shiite gunmen tied to the Hezbollah-led opposition. The fighting intensified and killed at least four people after Hezbollah's leader accused the government of waging war against the group. Everyone says the fighting could push the country into a sectarian civil war, and the WSJ points out that the conflict "has taken on the feel of a political proxy war between Washington and Tehran."
In history, this day in 1671, Thomas "Captain" Blood stole the crown jewels from the Tower of London. Cool.
In 1915, during the understudied and understood First World War, German and French forces fought the Battle of Artois.
Because Rome did it, in 1936, Fascist Italy took Addis Abba and annexed Ethiopia. Why, to what end?
In 1960, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved for sale an oral birth-control pill for the first time. Hardly anyone noticed.......
In 1962, a laser beam was successfully bounced off Moon for the first time.
This day in 1974, the House Judiciary Committee began formal hearings on the Nixon impeachment.
On May 9, 1978, the body of former Italian premier Aldo Moro was discovered in the back seat of a Renault. He had been kidnapped 54 days prior by the Red Brigades, who demanded the release of their incarcerated comrades. When Italian authorities refused to give in, Moro's captors killed him. By all accounts a good guy, and a poor choice for the Red Brigades, then in decline.
In 1983, the infallible Pope John Paul II retracted the Catholic Church's condemnation of astronomer Galileo Galilei, issued in 1633 by the infallible Pope Urban VIII, and this for heresy. He was sentenced to house arrest, and forced him to recant central scientific truths. Only took 350 years to correct.
In 1994, Nelson Mandela was chosen to be South Africa's first black president.
 This day in 1995, the CDC in Atlanta identified a new strain of filovirus in blood samples taken from 14 disease victims in Kikwit, Zaire. Designated "Ebola," this new pathogen proves to be so tremendously virulent that the government of Zaire is forced to place the entire city of Kinshasa under quarantine in order to contain the outbreak.
This day in 2002, in Bahrain, people were allowed to vote for representatives for the first time in nearly 30 years. Women were allowed to vote for the first time in the country's history.
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Thursday, May 08, 2008
Last night, I watched a PBS program on the effect drugging had on East German's athletes, and it was pretty damned grisly. They had no clue or care about long or medium effects, and an awful lot of teenagers died, at least one changed sex, and several are so screwed up they don't know what happened. I still think we all need to start at the ethics end and work down to the medical. Why, for example, is it fair for us to have benefit of great medical care and better food when African runners don't get that? And why do they so often win? ARE drugs an advantage?
Sen. Hillary Clinton was already facing an uphill battle, but she awoke yesterday to a decidedly changed mood and a growing feeling that her quest for the nomination is simply a lost cause. "Suddenly, a primary day that few expected to be decisive in the Democrats' long and close contest was interpreted on all sides as a game-changer," notes the WSJ. Annoyingly to some, Clinton vowed to stay in the race, and in order to quell any doubts about her determination, she campaigned in West Virginia, where she assured reporters that she'll keep going "until there is a nominee." Her advisers also publicly dismissed the idea that there had been any discussions about dropping out.
The media doesn't attempt to decipher whether she'd be a more competent candidate, just fluffs up the melodrama, in a real failure of journalistic opportunity. If we follow Bush with a naif, it'll be a disaster, and the la di da Obama blogsters will be called to account. I worry. I really do.
In a sign of Clinton's growing financial troubles, her advisers confirmed that she had lent her campaign $6.4 million in the last month, on top of an earlier $5 million infusion from her personal coffers. Though previous signs of financial trouble had brought cash into the Clinton campaign, the NYT says that even her advisers expressed concern that her online fundraising efforts aren't going as well as in the past. Meanwhile, some of her supporters are also expressing doubts about whether there's a path to victory. Dianne Feinstein, a big Clinton backer, said that she wants to "get her view on the rest of the race and what the strategy is."
In an interview with USAT, Clinton said she would be a better candidate against Sen. John McCain because she has a "much broader base to build a winning coalition on." She went on to say that an Associated Press article "found how Sen. Obama's support among working, hard-working Americans, white Americans, is weakening again, and how whites in both states who had not completed college were supporting me." Clinton insists, "There's a pattern emerging here." Yeah, a lot of whites fear black men. D'uh.
For his part, Obama took the day off yesterday and spent time at home in Chicago. Obama will begin to implement a new strategy that involves ignoring Clinton and acting like the de facto nominee. Although he won't abandon the primary campaign and still plans to make appearances in the states that will go to the polls in the next few weeks, he might also decide to take detours to important swing states that have already voted, such as Ohio, Florida, and Pennsylvania.
The WP asks a provocative question on Page One: "Did Rush Limbaugh Tilt Result In Indiana?" Limbaugh urged his listeners to take part in "Operation Chaos," which involved voting for Clinton "to bloody up Obama politically," and since the former first lady's margin of victory in Indiana was so small, some are wondering whether it had any effect. Clinton did hold an edge over Obama among Republican voters, and the most interesting fact is that approximately 60 percent of Republicans who supported the former first lady said they would vote for McCain in November even if Clinton were the nominee. But ultimately, her margin of victory among Republicans was significantly smaller than her overall edge with white Democrats. For what it's worth, Limbaugh called off "Operation Chaos" yesterday because he now thinks Obama is more vulnerable than Clinton.
Really, the GOP doesn't know, and they're trying to leave the impression they're still manipulating the power. I suspect that Clinton is feared far more than Obama, and they want to prevent her more than him.
Pentagon records that show how, since 2003, more than 43,000 U.S. troops were sent to Iraq or Afghanistan even though they had been deemed medically "non-deployable" in the weeks preceding their departure. This is seen as yet another example of how the military is short on troops. It's difficult to assess the gravity of the situation because the Pentagon doesn't list what the medical problems consisted of or how severe they were. A serviceman could be included in the category for simple problems, such as the need for eyeglasses or allergy medication, and they might have been resolved before most deployments. But there are at least a few soldiers who had to be sent back home because their medical problems proved to be too severe for a war zone.
As I predicted, the death toll from the Burma cyclone could reach 100,000. Some aid began to arrive, but frustration keeps on increasing among foreign governments and relief organizations who say they're ready to launch a full-scale operation, but their efforts are being stymied by the country's military leaders, who are reluctant to let outsiders into the notoriously closed-off country. Actually, frustration doesn't even begin to describe what people around the world are feeling as the military junta seems willing to do everything in its power to let the suffering continue. Meanwhile, teams from several governments and numerous agencies are standing by in Bangkok just waiting for the go-ahead.
The NYT quotes France's foreign minister, Bernard Kouchner saying "it would only take half an hour" for French boats and helicopters to reach the worst-hit areas, but the Burmese government isn't allowing them to proceed. The impatience has grown to such a degree that Kouchner proposed that the United Nations should invoke its "responsibility to protect" doctrine and simply ignore the government's wishes. The idea was shot down by others who said it would make the situation worse. Meanwhile, those on the ground continue to describe horrific scenes of survivors surrounded by bodies and animal carcasses, which, along with a general shortage of clean water, is raising fears that an epidemic could break out.
Of course, Africa isn't going to be denied catastrophe. And the increasingly desperate situation in Zimbabwe is a strong contender. The Post reports that gangs loyal to President Robert Mugabe beat 11 opposition activists to death this week. The LAT reports that the main opposition party says 24 of its members have been killed since the controversial March 29 elections. On Friday, Zimbabwe's election commission finally announced the results of the presidential election, saying that although the opposition leader had won, it wasn't by a large enough margin to avoid a runoff. Now the ruling party seems ready to do everything it can to quiet any voices of opposition.
The NYT notes that teachers and aid workers are now being targeted, which means "the widening net of intimidation now appears to be taking a toll on children too." Many schools have closed, and more than 100 of them are being used as bases of operations for the gangs that are attacking opposition members in the countryside. A member of the ruling party's leadership made it clear to a reporter working for the NYT that the party won't be kicked out of power by the elections. "We're giving the people of Zimbabwe another opportunity to mend their ways, to vote properly," he said. And if the majority votes for the opposition? "Prepare to be a war correspondent."
In history, this day in 1541, Hernando de Soto reached the Mississippi River. He called it Rio de Espiritu Santo. And he saw no bison, but lots of people and armed villages. A few decades later, the French found gabillions of bison and no people. Hm. Perhaps de Soto and his pig herd caused a pandemic.
Brilliant. In 1794, Antoine Lavoisier was executed by guillotine. He was the French chemist that discovered oxygen. Way to go, Revolution!
By 1842, this day, France wasn't much better. After a birthday celebration for King Louis Philippe, who would host the first flea circus six years later, 59 Parisians returning home by train were trapped in their rail cars and incinerated when their train collided with another. Coaches were locked, back then for reasons unknown, and no means of escape was available.In 1846, the first major battle of the Mexican War was fought at Palo Alto, Texas.
In 1886, pharmacist Dr. John Styth Pemberton invented what would later be called "Coca-Cola."
On this day in 1902, Mt. Peleé erupted on the West Indies island of Martinique. A wall of superheated ash and rock cascaded down the slopes, slamming directly into the community of Saint Pierre which vanished, for all intents. The shockwave and intense heat destroyed twenty ships in the harbor, and only two of the town's 28,000 residents survive the cataclysm. In all, over 30,000 people lost their lives. I visited there in 1973, and it was beautiful.
In 1921, Sweden abolished capital punishment.
This day in 1943, the Germans suppressed a revolt by Polish Jews and destroyed the Warsaw Ghetto. Two years to the day later, Truman announced that World War II had ended in Europe.
In 1958, President Eisenhower ordered the National Guard out of Little Rock as Ernest Green became the first black to graduate from an Arkansas public school. The horror.
In 1973, this day, militant American Indians who had held the South Dakota hamlet of Wounded Knee for 10 weeks surrendered.
In 1984, the Soviet Union announced that they would not participate in the 1984 Summer Olympics Games in Los Angeles, retaliation for 1980. Two years to the day later, reporters were told that 84,000 people had been evacuated from areas near the Chernobyl nuclear plant in Soviet Ukraine.
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Wednesday, May 07, 2008
Here in Boulder the Damned, Blogs are, as a rule, a joke, which is true nationally as well, starting with Drudge and working down. Self puffery, for the most part.
One individual, David Thielin, here in Boulder is a steady contributor to Colorado Pols, and has his own site, but it's difficult to believe he has many readers outside shills and another individual who, at one time, I thought might be a creation of Thielin to kick up interest. Maybe not, if today's piece is valid.
Here in Colorado, there's fight about taxis going on. It's an occupation that has been of interest because Colorado is not famous for great taxi service, and because Yellow Cab seems perpetually bankrupt, at least in Boulder, and because Republicans enjoy the thought of 'ethnics' or the poor engaged in fistfights to win their business, a subject broached yesterday in the media.
Barack Obama defeated Clinton by 14 percentage points in North Carolina, while the former first lady only managed to win Indiana by two percentage points. It was a devastating night for Clinton because yesterday's primaries made up the largest remaining Democratic contests and were her last real chance to close Obama's lead and convince party leaders that voters are turning her way. If there's one clear theme running through all the papers it's that this may really be the beginning of the end for Clinton, who vowed to continue in the race.
Clinton has pissed off the media, because they have their predictable and boilerplate templates ready for the Obama presidency, the occasion of which alleviates so much American guilt while, at the same time, looking real good to the rest of the world. Nobody doubts Obama's brains or good will. But I doubt he's ready to be President with so little politics, so little legislation behind him. That said, he's come through against Clinton, which may be the best thing that could have happened, because he's received experience he'll need against the GOP and McCain, whom he should easily beat.
But I say again, the biggest element to me is Bush. Had a Clinton-Obama race happened after the presidency of a competent, regardless of party, Obama would be far less of a risk than he is now. But Bush has devastated our image, our military, our federal infrastructure, and corrupted virtually everything he's touched. Obama doesn't have what every president before him for fifty years has had: a functioning bureaucracy of competent nerds and wonks. It's one thing to establish a children's crusade, as Kennedy metaphorically did after Eisenhower, it's another to follow Caligula with Joan of Arc.
Anyway........
Even though Clinton managed to win Indiana, "the night produced a far different outcome than the Clinton campaign had hoped for." Expectations were high that her margin of victory would be larger in Indiana and that she would be able to cut into Obama's lead in North Carolina. But that didn't happen, and Obama's victory address sounded a lot like a general-election speech. The NYT says due to delays in one county in Indiana, "Clinton did not appear on television until well after Mr. Obama, allowing him to put his stamp of victory on the evening." And while Obama "seemed relaxed and triumphant," as USA Today puts it, the LAT points out that "there was a note of wistfulness to [Clinton's] remarks. Clinton lingered over thank-yous to her family and supporters even as she promised to continue campaigning."
The Wall Street Journal, naturally, was quick to point out that the results "underscored some of the Illinois senator's weaknesses and the party's fissures." Almost half of the voters in both states said the controversy over Obama's former pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, was an important consideration when picking a candidate, and the majority of them supported Clinton. Also, as has become a pattern in the later contests, about one-quarter of each candidate's supporters said they would either vote Republican or not at all if their first choice doesn't end up being the Democratic nominee. Which is stupid and petulant. Less than half of Clinton's backers said they would vote for Obama in November. These are bigots, pure and simple. Besides these nuggets, the exit polls don't have any huge revelations as each candidate won by mostly holding on to his or her reliable base of support. Strangely enough, the exit polls didn't ask about the gas tax issue, so there's no real new insight into whether it swayed voters in either direction.
Still, winning Indiana was no small feat for Clinton, since Obama had once expected to easily win the state. But, ultimately, Obama managed to show he could survive some of the roughest weeks in his campaign, while Clinton "gained no new argument to make to the superdelegates," writes Slate's John Dickerson. And in some important ways, making that argument is now even harder. Following the racial divide that has become common in this contest, more than 90 percent of African-Americans voted for Obama, and superdelegates aren't eager to anger one of the Democratic Party's most reliable bases of support. If the margin would have been greater in Indiana, or smaller in North Carolina, it would have been easy for Clinton to dismiss calls that she drop out of the race. But now, the calls are likely to get louder, and she's likely to have a hard time raising money for the remaining contests. Clinton isn't likely to drop out yet if only because she will probably win the primaries in West Virginia and Kentucky in the next two weeks. Although, because of race issue.
Clinton's campaign is clearly turning its attention to pushing for a resolution of the dispute regarding the delegates in Michigan and Florida. "It would be a little strange to have a nominee chosen by 48 states," Clinton said last night. In this effort, Clinton's aides are hammering home the idea that the number of delegates needed to win the nomination is 2,209, instead of the 2,025 that would be required if Michigan and Florida are left out. According to the Associated Press, Obama now has 1,815.5 delegates and Clinton 1,672, with 55 still to be divided.
John McCain is busy trying to unify the Republican Party. Yesterday, McCain tried to reassure conservatives who may be nervous about his record that if elected president, he's committed to appointing justices with "a proven commitment to judicial restraint." McCain vowed to appoint Supreme Court justices that follow the mold of Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Samuel Alito Jr. The NYT's editorial board is thankful for the speech, which helped put back into focus "what this year's presidential race is all about." Which is: the crappy record of the conservatives. The NYT hopes it will work as a cue for the Democratic contenders to begin explaining to voters "what is truly at stake in this election." Obama and Clinton "can continue to tear each other up and fight over each superdelegate, or they can debate the issues—for the sake of the voters." Or, the voters can do some work themselves.
The cyclone that devastated Burma on Saturday is looking worse and worse. Burma's state television announced the estimated death toll has risen to 22,000, and there are still 41,000 missing. I'd triple those numbers today, and be prepared for worse. An estimated 1 million survivors are thought to have been left homeless. Some aid began to flow, and the Burmese government has said it will allow international relief organizations to enter the country. I love that "allow." They're doing us a favor? There were complaints yesterday that the Burmese government isn't doing enough to speed up the aid-delivery process and is still requiring foreign workers to obtain visas before they can enter the country. The Post notes that it seems "little or no aid reached the Irrawaddy Delta," the worst-affected region.
The United States has offered $3 million in aid, an increase from the $250,000 that was announced on Monday. After signing legislation to award a Congressional Gold Medal to Burma's most famous political dissident, Aung San Suu Kyi, President Bush criticized the military junta and pleaded with the Burmese leaders to "let the United States come to help you help the people." Like we did after Katrina. The WP and NYT point out that foreign leaders and aid groups criticized the Bush administration for mixing a political message into the relief talk. "The priority now is rendering assistance to thousands of displaced people who urgently need our assistance," Australia's foreign minister said.
Of course, what food is there to send? WSJ points out that in addition to all the devastation, the cyclone is also likely to create "a second crisis: one of deepening hunger" not only in Burma but across the region. Burma expected to export rice this year, but the cyclone devastated the rice-growing areas, which not only means there will be less food inside the country but also that the rice supply in several neighboring countries could be affected. This, in turn could lead to higher rice prices, which had already been skyrocketing lately.
In history, this day in 1429, the English siege of Orleans was broken by Joan of Arc.
In 1763, the Indian chief Pontiac began all out war on the British in New York. When it became ours, 37 years later, on this same day the U.S. Congress divided the Northwest Territory into two parts. The western part became the Indiana Territory and the eastern section remained the Northwest Territory.
This day in 1915, the Cunard liner Lusitania was torpedoed by German submarine U-20 off the coast of Ireland. The ship went under in just 18 minutes. In the panic, the crew only managed to launch 6 of the 48 lifeboats, given the quick list, and 1,201 are killed. Contrary to published reports of the time, the passenger ship was smuggling 3,863 boxes of ammunition and 323 bundles of guncotton into Britain. It was a legal target.
On this day in 1940, Winston Churchill became British Prime Minister.
Two years to the day later, in the Battle of the Coral Sea, the Japanese and American navies fought with carrier planes. It was the first time in the history of naval warfare where two enemy fleets fought without ships seeing each other. We lost the Lexington.
In 1945, Germany signed unconditional surrender ending World War II. It would take effect the next day.
A year to the day later, Tokyo Telecommunications Engineering Corp. was founded. The company was later renamed Sony.
This day in 1975, President Ford declared an end to the Vietnam War. But it didn't end. Nine years to the day later, a $180 million out-of-court settlement was announced in the Agent Orange class-action suit brought by Vietnam veterans. They claimed they had suffered injury from exposure to the defoliant while serving in the armed forces. And they had.
It was revealed this day in 1997, by a report released by the U.S. government, that Switzerland provided Nazi Germany with equipment and credit. Germany exchanged for gold what had been plundered or stolen. Switzerland did not comply with postwar agreements to return the gold. Sweet.
It was this day in 1999, in Belgrade, Yugoslavia, three Chinese citizens were killed and 20 wounded when a NATO plane mistakenly bombed the Chinese embassy.
In 2003, in Washington, DC, General Motors Corp. delivered six fuel cell vehicles to Capitol Hill for lawmakers and others to test drive during the next two years. We're no closer today to Hydrogen vehicles.
007's are men. In 2003, an elderly Roger Moore collapsed during a matinee performance of the Broadway comedy "The Play What I Wrote." He finished the show after a 10-minute break. He was fitted with a pacemaker the following day.
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Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Here in Boulder the Damned, the Plantlife aren't taking the new ruling well from a judge they hate. I can only hope there IS nothing nefarious about any relationship between Judge Klein and former judge/mayor Richard McLean and his wife, and there's nothing but hope from some bitter people that there is.
Apparently the evidence swept together by the Kirlins, the victims of the adverse possession case, not only does not help them but supports the other side. This is somewhat damaging to their contention the McLean side fabricated evidence. And, their case in general.
My objection is not over the adverse possession issues per se, but the mob mentality alive in Boulder that provides noted cowards and blowhards the chance to prance in front of others as heroes, although they've risked nothing. I'd like to see, as a matter of form, the McLeans - should they persevere in defeating the challenge as it looks sure they weill - to subpoena the Daily Camera for the User ID's of the mob (I'm predicting many have multiple User ID's) and filing slander and defamation charges. First, because there should be the threat of reprisal for calling people thieves and liars in a public forum without merit, and second because they were so wrong, and they're trying to get revenge for slights or wounds life has given them without being honest about it.
"McCain wants to stay in Iraq until no more Americans are getting killed, no matter how long it takes and how many Americans get killed achieving that goal -- that is, the goal of not getting any more Americans killed. And once that goal is achieved, we'll stay." While it reads funny, that IS McCain's stated goal, from his own words, and was precised by Rick Hertzberg of The New Yorker.
Third World horrors. Nobody should believe initial death estimates from any 3rd world nation, but multiply by ten right off. They have no census, having no elections and no need. Burma's government figures released today say as many as 15,000 people were killed (early morning wire stories report that an additional 30,000 people are still missing). The rough 250 number initially given suggested this. Time to multiply by 5 now. We'll never know, anyway.
Burma's foreign minister went on state-run television to report that 10,000 people died in just one town. The previous official tally was 351 and points out that the cyclone potentially left "hundreds of thousands of people homeless." The Wall Street Journal says it was the country's worst recorded natural disaster and points out that the previous record was held by a 1926 storm that killed 2,700. If the numbers are accurate, it would amount to the worst natural disaster in Asia since the 2004 tsunami. USA Today focuses on the relief efforts and says it could be several days before the victims begin to receive much-needed food, water, and medical assistance.
"The call for international aid quickly became politicized," notes the WP. First lady Laura Bush, who has long taken a special interest in Burmese issues, held a rare news conference where she accused the country's military leaders of failing to issue warnings about the impending cyclone and blocking international aid efforts. Having no shame, the LAT points out things got even more politicized when the first lady announced that President Bush would sign legislation today awarding the Congressional Gold Medal to political activist Aung San Suu Kyi. Little late, guys. A United Nations spokesman said the Burmese military junta is "receptive to international assistance" and the notoriously closed-off country said it would accept foreign aid workers, says the LAT. Probably only if cute, female and white, but let it go. The NYT reports that, so far, "most foreigners and all foreign journalists have been barred from entering the country." Always a good sign.
The United Nations said it is ready to give aid worth up to $30 million from its emergency response fund. So far, the United States has made available a pathetic $250,000 to aid organizations, but the first lady promised that "more aid will be forthcoming." Remember Katrina. Any further assistance from the United States might have to go through separate relief organizations because of U.S. sanctions currently in place, says the LAT. But the full extent of the damage is still not known as many roads are still impossible to traverse, and it might be days before the United Nations can independently confirm how much assistance will be needed.
The media all hear reports that people in Burma are complaining that the military has been slow to respond and provide relief. "People are saying, 'Last September, they were incredibly efficient at clearing 100,000 people off the street, so why aren't they being as efficient clearing 100,000 trees off the street?'" a "Bangkok-based diplomat" asked the WP.
Despite all the devastation, the country's leaders still seem determined to hold a controversial referendum on a new constitution Saturday. The government says the constitution will set the country on the road to democracy, but critics insist it's just a ploy to legitimize the junta's power and the vote won't be anywhere close to fair. Early morning wire stories report that the government announced today that voting will be postponed until May 24 in many of the hardest-hit areas. Why not in all?
In our interminable election, it's yet another day-that-could-change-everything as voters head to the polls in North Carolina and Indiana to pick whether they'd rather see Sen. Hillary Clinton or Sen. Barack Obama run against Sen. John McCain. Actually, no one really expects today to bring much clarity to anything. A sign of this attitude can be seen in the WP's Dan Balz, who has regularly been writing a feature titled "Eight Questions Today's Primaries Could Answer" before the big primaries this year. Today, Balz nixes the "Could Answer" part and merely asks general questions about the contest.
North Carolina and Indiana are the last two big primaries with a total of 187 delegates up for grabs. After today, the six remaining contests have a mere 217 pledged delegates to hand out and most already have a clear favorite. The Post says Oregon is the only one that could be considered competitive, but Obama is seen as the favorite in that state. A big day for both candidates, but probably more so for Clinton, who could use today's results to support her contention that the race is turning in her favor. The NYT's Adam Nagourney fronts a look at the three possible outcomes in today's primaries and says that if Clinton manages to win Indiana and at least come close in North Carolina it will undoubtedly raise more doubts about Obama's chances in November. But if she loses both states it "would almost certainly mean lights out for the Clinton campaign." The most likely result is that Clinton will get a victory in Indiana and Obama will win North Carolina, which, of course, means the contest will keep going.
The Post's Balz says that after today, the most important date that will help determine the outcome of the contest could be May 31, when the Democratic National Committee's rules and bylaws committee will get together to consider what to do about the Michigan and Florida delegates.
The WP's E.J. Dionne Jr. says Clinton has recently found her best campaign strategy by portraying herself as a populist and a fighter. "It took a series of defeats to galvanize her campaign and help her put forward a better self." But in doing so, she began advocating for the gas tax holiday, which was the best thing that could have happened to Obama. The senator from Illinois had been having a rough couple of weeks and it seemed like he was losing focus, but the tax holiday issue brought back the old Obama who could talk about breaking from traditional Washington politics. "A contest between the old Obama and the new Clinton is a fair fight," he writes. "It's too bad only a few states are left to see it."
It looks like the big winner of Microsoft's failure to buy Yahoo is Google. It's ironic because Microsoft clearly wanted to buy Yahoo in order to gain ground on Google, but it may have ended up strengthening the Internet giant. Google began complaining about the possible merger, but then decided to play nice and offered Yahoo a partnership. That led to Yahoo asking for more money and Microsoft ended its courtship. Conclusion? Google is the king of the hill. "Microsoft used to set the agenda for technology, period, and Google is setting the agenda now," an analyst tells the LAT.
The WP's Eugene Robinson writes his "annual American Idol column" and says there's something wrong with America's favorite reality program. Ratings are down and "this season, it was easy to find contestants to root against but hard to find anyone to root for." Robinson says the program "lacks sizzle" partly because producers have been trying to milk as much money from the show as possible and as a result are overextending the contestants to the point of exhaustion. Nowadays, "the most urgent reason to watch the show isn't to see who sings well or gets voted off, it's to see how out of it Paula Abdul appears to be on a given evening."
In history, this day in 1527, German mercenary troops began sacking Rome, bringing about what most historians consider the end of the Renaissance and providing a Clue as to how Europe would shake out for the last half of that millennium.
Two years later, more people were adversely affected when in 1529 Babur defeated the Afghan Chiefs in the Battle of Ghagra, India.
In 1626, Manhattan was purchased by Dutch governor Peter Minuet for the equivalent of $24 in goods. Some think the value closer to $500, but either way it was robbery. You can pay more for lunch at most Manhattan restaurants.
In 1682, Louis XIV moved his court to Versailles, France. While ridiculed, Louis knew his nobility, and he kept them docile and at his call.
In 1862, Henry David Thoreau, author of Walden and the essay Civil Disobedience, died at age 44. His last words were "Moose.. Indian". Heavy.
This day in 1877, Crazy Horse surrendered to U.S. troops in Nebraska. He'd be dead soon after.
In 1889, the Universal Exposition - designed to stick it to Germany - opened in Paris, France. It marked the dedication of the Eiffel Tower. Also at the exposition was the first automobile in Paris, the Mercedes-Benz.
In 1910, Edward VII of England died. Edward had turned his nation towards France and away from Germany, for which he has been given small credit.
This day in 1937, the German Zeppelin Hindenberg exploded at Lakehurst, leaving 36 dead and others seriously burned of the 97 aboard. Official cause of the explosion is listed as "St. Elmo's Fire," although it probably also involved the flammable silver paint the Germans used to coat the thing.
In 1942, the lowest day. The Japanese seized control of the Philippines, and about 15,000 Americans and Filipinos on Corregidor surrendered to the Japanese. The Bataan death march began.
This day in 1959, the Pablo Picasso painting of a Dutch girl was sold for $154,000 in London. It was the highest price paid to date for a painting by a living artist.
In 1981, a jury of international architects and sculptors unanimously selected Maya Ying Lin's entry for the design of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. Brilliant choice.
In 1994, the Chunnel officially opened, which links England and France. Somewhere, Joan of Arc and Henry V are drinking.
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Monday, May 05, 2008
First, a look back at great fictional disasters. This, is from 5/5/2000: Ice -- the Ultimate Disaster by Richard W Noone.
"On May 5 of the year 2000, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn will be aligned with the earth for the first time in 6,000 years. On that day the ice buildup at the South Pole will upset the earth's axis, sending trillions of tons of ice in the water sweeping over the surface of our planet." Those were the days, eh?
Eh? And here's an update on the 'landgrab' issue that seems to suggest the Kirlins are bonkers, but then this is still the same judge, and as everyone knows, the judge is corrupt........ Pfffffft.
 Just to be clear here, you can recall what you want about Iron Man, but it's Leslie Bibb that elbows her way to the front of my mind. Rather forcefully. Knock out.
That said, this superhero movie was quite funny, and Robert Downey is an incredibly talented comedian and worked really well with Gwyneth Paltrow, who was her usual brilliant self in what must have been a fun role in a fun movie. Stupid, of course, but Downey made everything seem plausible. His scenes talking to his computers were hysterical, and I kept recalling the best and funniest scenes from the West Wing. Imagine an evil Sam Seaborne chatting up his hooker friends. It was totally unexpected in a movie like this, and that it made about $150 mil its first weekend makes me glad: it deserves it. Anything so unexpectedly good makes me glad both for the surprise and the fact.
There was a valid message, wedged in, and well done, and I was really quite impressed with a damned Marvel Comic movie. And certainly enjoyed it.
Also, to repeat what is on the DE home page, much of what you read here is from SLATE, On This Day, Daily Rotten, and other well known sites as well as Colorado based sites. I cut and paste and comment, but I don't want anyone thinking I read all the papers to bring you this. I believe it's fair use, and I make neither secret nor profit of it, and it makes sure I've read what I need to in order to hone my brilliance. I heard that.
Very little is known about many of the people who have died while detained by immigration authorities. The NYT obtained a list through a Freedom of Information Act request and reveals that 66 people died while in immigration custody from January 2004 to November 2007. Although the list obtained by the NYT "is the fullest accounting to date of deaths in immigration detention," the document "raises as many questions as it answers" because there are few details on the list, and the information is "often unreliable." Once a person gets detained by immigration authorities, it is notoriously difficult for friends and family members to get information, "even when they die." The NYT followed up on a few of the deaths and finds family members who still have questions about how or why their loved ones died. Some families say they weren't told when a detainee became sick, and one woman says she only found out her husband had died several weeks after the fact. Critics, including several lawmakers, are calling for greater oversight of a system that has ballooned in size over the past few years.
USA Today leads with figures that show welfare rolls rose in 27 states in the last six months of 2007. This marks a reversal since the numbers had been steadily decreasing for more than a decade. "When the economy starts to tank, that's when our business starts growing," the chief of eligibility for Nevada's welfare agency said.
Health care will provide voters in November with an issue on which the Republican and Democratic presidential contenders offer very different proposals. Although all the candidates say they want more Americans to have access to affordable health insurance, their strategies on how to get there offer a stark choice, ultimately because "they view the problem differently."
The Washington Post leads with the latest he-said/she-said from the campaign trail as the candidates campaigned furiously before the critical Tuesday primaries in Indiana and North Carolina. The Wall Street Journal leads its world-wide newsbox with a look at how Sen. Barack Obama has gone back to addressing voters in a more intimate setting. Even though the large rallies draw lots of people, they don't necessarily help him gain new voters, and Obama's campaign now sees the arena-style events as one of the main reasons why he lost the popular vote in Texas.
Both of the Democratic presidential contenders made an appearance on the Sunday-morning talk-show circuit. Sen. Barack Obama once again had to discuss his former pastor, while Sen. Hillary Clinton had to answer questions about her stance on Iran, but they both frequently came back to the issue that has dominated the rhetoric in the last days before the Tuesday primaries: the gas-tax holiday. Obama continued to characterize the holiday as a political "gimmick," which it at least partly is. When Clinton was asked whether she could name an economist who agreed with her on the holiday, she said, "I'm not going to put my lot in with economists because I know if we did it right...we would design it in such a way that it would be implemented effectively." And then, in a not-so-veiled reference to Obama, she said that "elite opinion is always on the side of doing things that really disadvantage the vast majority of Americans." Also, partly true.
What I do not understand, is that I heard Clinton was expecting the Big Oil guys to foot the tax bill for the holiday, so that's not an issue for the economy per se. We'll see. In the last few days, Clinton has been increasing her populist rhetoric in order to make Obama seem an out-of-touch elitist who doesn't understand the problems of regular Americans. The NYT says that as the Tuesday primaries approach, "the candidates were a study in contrasts." Clinton seems to be getting angrier as she talks about how working-class Americans are constantly suffering at the hands of people who couldn't care less about them. For his part, Obama is striking a more conciliatory tone, trying to appeal to Democrats who may like Clinton but mostly just want to win back the White House in November.
In a Page One piece, the NYT takes a look at how the warrior attitude that Clinton is displaying on the trail also highlights why she's such a divisive figure.
Reviewing the Sunday talk-show appearances, the NYT's Alessandra Stanley says the programs "provided an arresting tableau of the reversal of fortunes in the Democratic race." While Clinton appeared "forceful, confident and at times even frisky," Obama "looked grave and dispirited." Which is a valid point. He's only at his best when the going is good.
Obama's standing has been hurt. The NYT says that while most Americans think Obama handled the controversies regarding the Rev. Jeremiah Wright appropriately, almost half thought he denounced his former pastor because it would help him politically rather than because of actual disagreements. And even though 24 percent of voters say the issue would affect their vote in November, 44 percent said it would be important to "most people you know." For its part, USAT's poll gives even worse news to Obama because, for the first time in three months, it shows Clinton with more support from Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents.
While Obama used to beat Clinton by wide margins on the question of who would be a stronger candidate against McCain, the former first lady is now ahead by five points. The one piece of good news for Obama is that voters still see him as more honest, and the NYT poll says "an overwhelming majority" see the gas-tax holiday as political pandering. But nobody's coming out against it.
The U.S. believes Hezbollah militants are training Shiite militias in Iran. This information apparently came from captured militia members and was given to the Iraqi government, but it's not clear whether the issue was discussed when Iraqi leaders traveled to Tehran last week. Although U.S. officials say the training is overseen by the Quds Force of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard, the instructors are from Hezbollah.
It's not really clear whether the Iraqi government believes Iran is arming and training Shiite militias. Yesterday it seemed like the Iraqi government was making distance from the American claims of Iranian involvement when it announced that a committee had been set up to investigate. But a few hours later, the Iraqi government spokesman said his comments had been misinterpreted. He said the proof of Iranian involvement is there, and the committee is tasked with compiling the evidence so it can be presented to Tehran.
The LAT has an interesting piece that looks at how more Chinese companies are choosing to set up shop in the United States. Several states are working hard to promote themselves and are offering plenty of incentives. The strategy seems to be working, and more Chinese investors are deciding that it makes economic sense to expand into the United States, despite higher labor costs. One wonders why, of course.
In history, this day in 2349 BC, Noah's Ark landed on Mount Ararat, according to calculations by James Ussher, Archbishop of the Church of Ireland. Take that to the bank.
Equally world informed son of Charlemagne, Emperor Louis of Bavaria, died of fright during a total eclipse of the sun this day in 840. His sons quarrelled, causing the division of his Empire into France, Germany, and Italy.
Then, nothing else happened this day till 1798, when U.S. Secretary of War William McHenry ordered that the USS Constitution be made ready for sea. The world's most beautiful ship.
This day in 1821, Napoleon died on the island of St. Helena, some suspect from arsenic poisoning, but more likely from stomach cancer as had his father. He died on the island of St. Helena, in exile.
In 1862, Mexican peasants took it to the French invader at the Battle of Puebla. It is celebrated as Cinco de Mayo Day. Hale!
It was this day in 1865 that the Thirteenth Amendment was ratified, abolishing slavery in the U.S.
Nothing new. In 1892, the U.S. Congress extended the Geary Chinese Exclusion Act for 10 more years. The act required Chinese in the U.S. to be registered or face deportation. Then, the Japanese in later years.
In 1917, this day, American Eugene Jacques Bullard earned his flying certificate with the French Air Service fighting the Germans. He was our first African-American aviator, and Tuskegee's Airmen probably knew his name. So should we all.
In 1925, this day, high school teacher John T. Scopes was arrested for teaching evolution by authorities in Dayton, Tennessee, as part of a publicity stunt to make the town famous. Which it momentarily did, with the help of H.L. Mencken. Since Scopes admitted teaching the theory, he was found guilty, and the law remained on the books in the backward state until 1967. At which point Kansas joined her.........
It was this day in 1942, that sixty one year old General Joseph Stilwell learned that the Japanese had cut his railway out of China and was forced to lead his troops into India over mountains and through jungle, with women and wounded. He lost not a man.
In 1945, Elsie Mitchell and five children she is caring for were killed by a Japanese balloon bomb which had drifted over the Pacific into Oregon, as was hoped. The thinking was they'd start forest fires. They are the only people killed in action on the US mainland during World War II. Ms. Mitchell was pregnant at the time.
Finally. On May 5, 1961, Alan B. Shepard became the first American in space, with a fifteen minute suborbital flight.
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Sunday, May 04, 2008
Business on the Sabbath. Microsoft's surprise decision to ditch its proposed buyout of Yahoo, which had absorbed ink of late, is the big story. The move, which is expected to send the Internet giant's stock price tumbling, came after the companies' chiefs failed to agree on a price tag for the deal. Microsoft took almost $50 billion off the table yesterday, breaking off merger talks with Yahoo after three months of high-level negotiations. "The economics demanded by Yahoo do not make sense for us," said Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer.
Over the past week, Microsoft had increased its buyout offer to $33 a share—a $5 billion increase, but still well short of Yahoo's $37-a-share asking price. The LAT notes that some analysts had predicted Microsoft would withdraw its offer as a "brass-knuckles bargaining tactic," hoping to drive down Yahoo stock and force the company to accept Microsoft's terms. The NYT looks at Yahoo's possible next steps: the need to placate investors might give fresh impetus to a search-advertising deal with Google, or to potential mergers with AOL or MySpace.
Great. The Washington Post says that nearly eight years after al-Qaida almost sank the USS Cole, all those convicted of the attack have either escaped or been released from prison by Yemeni officials.
The New York Times reports that health care is becoming prohibitively expensive even for people with health insurance, thanks to the softening economy and rising premiums and out-of-pocket expenses. The economic slowdown is taking its toll even on people with health insurance, reports the NYT: doctors, employers and union officials say that rising premiums, reduced coverage, and bigger deductibles are making it harder and harder for people to meet the costs of their medical treatment. In many cases, people are reportedly skipping routine medical checkups to save on co-payments; at worst, people are finding that their health insurance is adequate only as long as they don't actually require medical attention. "There's a real shift in the burden of health care to people who happen to be sick," says one analyst.
The Democratic presidential candidates continued to trade punches yesterday over the federal gasoline tax. Hillary Clinton renewed calls for a suspension of the tax, while Obama dismissed the plan as a "gimmick" and asked Democrats to disregard "phony ideas, calculated to win elections instead of actually solving problems." The NYT off-leads with an analysis arguing that the row speaks to the candidates' economic instincts: policy wonks say Clinton's ideas make better political than economic sense, while Obama gets lower marks for fiscal discipline.
Obama picked up another caucus victory, winning Guam by just seven votes. The next contest, of course, is Tuesday's double-whammy in Indiana and North Carolina: The NYT considers the significance of Indiana's splintered demographics, while the LAT looks to North Carolina, where more than a third of a million people have already cast early votes. It's looking increasingly likely, though, that this week's primaries won't be enough to knock either candidate out of the race; the LAT says both camps are poised to keep slugging until the end of the primary season.
Looking further ahead, the Post views Barack Obama's attempts to redefine what it means to be a patriot: His argument that true patriotism lies not in flag pins but in responsible leadership might be a hard sell in the face of John McCain's heroic war record. The NYT picks up the theme, questioning Obama's conviction that he can rise above efforts to use patriotic symbols as a bludgeon: Like Michael Dukakis in 1988, the paper argues, Obama is new to the national scene and vulnerable to being redefined by Republican attacks.
Sad day at Churchill Downs. Big Brown won the Kentucky Derby yesterday, but Eight Belles made the headlines, finishing second before collapsing with two broken ankles and having to be euthanized on the track. "Thoroughbred racing is in moral crisis, and everyone now knows it," says the Post, noting that horses are now so over-raced that an average of two per day suffer career-ending injuries. Albeit, not the blue bloods here.
Prison, fines, punishment. Where is it? Shocks from poorly installed electrical wiring have killed at least a dozen American soldiers at military bases across Iraq in recent years; many more troops have been injured. The NYT reports that the incidents, which continued even after electricians and military officials raised safety concerns, have led to renewed questions about the oversight of contractors in the war zone.
Finally! DNA evidence isn't all it's cracked up to be, according to the LAT: While it's incredibly unlikely that any given person's DNA will coincidentally match samples from a crime scene, the odds of an incorrect match increase enormously when investigators check genetic patterns against the millions of records in the national DNA database. Unfortunately, that's seldom made clear to jurors, potentially resulting in unfair convictions in cases decided by DNA evidence.
Researchers have found a way to breed poison-free fugu blowfish, notes the NYT. That's good news for Japanese enthusiasts, who prize the fish as a delicacy—but bad news for fugu suppliers, who until now have been able to charge high prices for safely cleaned and prepared blowfish. "We won't approve it," huffs an official from Japan's National Fugu Association. "We're not engaging in this irrelevant discussion."
In history, this day in 1471, the Yorkists defeated the Landcastrians at the battle of Tewkesbury in the War of the Roses.
On this day in 1863, the Battle of Chancellorsville ended when the Union Army retreated. Jackson was gone, and Gettysburg next. THIS was the highwater mark. A year to the day later, the Rebels were toast when Ulysses S Grant crossed the Rapidan and began his duel with Robert E Lee.
This day in 1916, Germany agreed to limit its submarine warfare after a demand from U.S. President Wilson.
In 1932, syphilitic Al Capone entered the Atlanta Penitentiary federal prison for income-tax evasion.
In 1942, the Battle of the Coral Sea commenced as American and Japanese carriers launched their attacks at each other. Same day, the United States began food rationing.
It began. In 1961, thirteen civil rights activists, dubbed "Freedom Riders," began a bus trip through the South.
In May of 1970, on this day, 28 Ohio National Guardsmen killed four students and wounded nine others at Kent State University. The Guardsmen had read them the riot act, but the students refused to disperse. So they shot them. Posse Commitatus, anyone?
In 1979, Margaret Thatcher became Britain's first woman prime minister.
Ten years to the day later, thanks to Thatcher's intel, Oliver North, a former White House aide and war hero, was convicted of shredding documents and two other crimes. He was acquitted of nine other charges stemming from the Iran-Contra affair. The three convictions were later overturned on appeal.
Was worse in 1999. Several severe tornadoes hit the Midwest U.S. overnight, and at least 45 people were killed.
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All material on this site copyright Richard L. MacLeod (Dark Cloud) 1968-2010 unless otherwise stated.
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