Katrina Report Spreads Blame Hurricane Katrina exposed the U.S. government’s failure to learn the lessons of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, as leaders from President Bush down disregarded ample warnings of the threat to New Orleans and did not execute emergency plans or share information that would have saved lives, according to a blistering report by House investigators. A draft of the report, to be released publicly Wednesday, includes 90 findings of failures at all levels of government, according to a senior investigation staffer who requested anonymity because the document is not final. Titled “A Failure of Initiative,” it…
-
-
WorldRider: Journey of Adventure & Discovery Allan Karl’s epic motorcycle ride came to an abrupt end in a post dated January 15th. His travelblog, stuffed with fantastic photos, has followed his journey from California up into Canada and Alaska, and down through Mexico, Central America, and South America towards Tierra del Fuego. Something went badly awry a few weeks back in Tica Tica, Bolivia, and at last report Allan was laid up in a local medical clinic with a broken leg, waiting to arrange med-evac back to the States. He just went “under” anesthesia. Way to blog the moment, Allan!…
-
A check of Technorati today revealed that lots of people were talking about something called “Smoking Dutch Cleanser.” Since I missed this reference the other day, I went looking for it. Turns out Maureen Dowd, Pulitzer-Prize winning columnist, had something interesting tucked behind the New York Times’ “Orange Curtain” of premium content. Not to worry, I knew someone would make it their business to part that curtain so that all could enjoy the sensation of Nevada Thunder | Blog Archive | Smoking Dutch Cleanser Vice President Dick Cheney bitterly complains that national security leaks are endangering America. Unless, of course,…
-
WWDTM has a podcast now. Yayy! NPR : Podcast Directory I read about this on Adam Felber’s blog Fanatical Apathy, and it makes me happy to know that if we wanted to tackle a home repair project or take off for the day, we don’t have to miss the show.
-
I wish we were doing this at Holy Moly: Chicago Tribune | Churches to mark Darwin’s birthday NEW YORK — Nearly 450 Christian churches around the country plan to celebrate the 197th birthday of Charles Darwin on Sunday with programs and sermons intended to emphasize that his theory of biological evolution is compatible with faith and that Christians have no need to choose between religion and science. “It’s to demonstrate, by Christian leaders and members of the clergy, that you don’t have to make that choice. You can have both,” said Michael Zimmerman, dean of the College of Letters and…
-
Can I get a “Well…duh!”? Chicago Tribune | Former CIA official says Bush misled country to war WASHINGTON — The former CIA official charged with managing the U.S. government’s secret intelligence assessments on Iraq says the Bush administration chose war first and then misleadingly used raw data to assemble a public case for its decision to invade. Paul Pillar, who was the CIA’s national intelligence officer for the Middle East and South Asia from 2000 to 2005, said the Bush administration also played on the nation’s fears in the wake of the 2001 terrorist attacks, falsely linking Al Qaeda to…
-
Oops! – Bush Unaware Mikes Were Still On – Yahoo! News When reporters left, Bush spoke about the National Security Agency program that he authorized four years ago and which has drawn criticism from Democrats and Republicans alike. However, the microphones stayed on for a few minutes. That allowed journalists back at the White House to eavesdrop on Bush’s defense of the eavesdropping. His private statements were basically no different from what he’s said in public. “I want to share some thoughts with you before I answer your questions,” Bush began. “First of all, I expect this conversation we’re about…
-
I’ve been tagging del.icio.us links with this phrase today: RhetoricOfFailure. In fact, I bundled it together with a lot of other terms, like “CorruptRepublicans” and “SmirkingBastards” and “anti-truth.” Because every time I read a news item about something that didn’t go so well lately for the current Administration, I tag it and add it to the growing linkslist of failures. . I’ll be adding a new tag to the bundle: “Disengaged.” I just ran across this article from Boing Boing, and began sobbing helplessly at the needless loss of life and property because a bunch of elected and appointed officials…
-
It’s Alive! It’s Alive! It’s… not quite dead, but it’s feeling better. Call your Congressdrone: Error may snag $39 billion spending-cut bill – Yahoo! News WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A typographical error in a $39 billion U.S. domestic spending-cut bill signed into law by President George W. Bush on Wednesday could mean another vote on the measure that passed only after Vice President Dick Cheney intervened with a tie-breaking vote. The law, which sparked fury among Democrats and strong opposition from some Republicans in an election year, cuts funds for health care, student loan and other programs. This time, MAYBE, we…
-
Salt Lake Tribune – Salt Lake Tribune Home Page Women’s ‘pill bill’ dies again Contraception: Planned Parenthood director tells lawmakers to provide ‘health care that eliminates the need for abortion’ Insurance and business leaders gave the all-male (emphasis Blogula Rasa’s) Senate Health and Human Services Committee the reasons they were looking for to kill the so-called “pill bill” for the eighth year in a row Wednesday – complaints about unfunded mandates, health care costs and meddling in the marketplace. Sen. Scott McCoy, a Salt Lake City Democrat, argued SB42 would simply put in law what most Utah insurance companies already…