Japan:
Info Links:
- BBC
- NHK in English (Live feed in upper right corner)
- Telegraph of London
- Kyodo Wire
- Japan Times
- Asahi Shimbun
- SPEEDI (Japan Radiation level map)
- Ibaraki Prefecture Geiger Counter Readings
- US National Radiation Map (updated every minute)
- Animated Radioactive Fallout Forecast
- Fukushima Potential Radiation Release (you can select area/type of radiation)
- Via Soylent Green: Radiation Exposure in Daily Life
- Radiation Dose Chart
- ZeroHedge commenter Max2205′s excellent post about radioactivity including a list of radioactive elements and their half lives.
- Donations to the American Red Cross that are being designated to Japanese Earthquake relief are already getting to the folks in Japan and are most helpful.
New radioactive leak at 2nd nuclear plant in Onagawa, Japan
IAEA: “Uncontrolled nuclear chain reactions” may be coming from melted fuel in No. 1 reactor
Shades of Chernobyl…Highway To The Fukushima Zone: First Person Trek Through A Radioactive Wasteland
An intrepid Japanese duo has decided to do the reverse Fukushima commute and in a stunning filmed expose, drives through cracked roads, herds of animals in city streets and ghost towns to measure the radiation from 30 km out to 1.5 km away from Fukushima, where it hits 112 microsieverts, or roughly 350 times normal radiation. But don’t worry. Everything is still under the recently upgraded (twice) legal limit…. for those clad in lead armor.
For those who have not seen what the Chernobyl disaster site looks like now here is a place to start. Ghost town and the land of Wolves. She has many other pictures, hit the home button for a list.
China, Russia concern over contaminated water
Emperor, Empress visit Fukushima evacuees
Evacuated children welcomed at new school
World News:
Oil Climbs Above $112 on Libyan Armed Revolt, Dollar Weakness
Russia wants ‘red button’ rights for US missile defence system
Botched Nato bomb raid on Brega leaves 13 Libyan rebels dead after jets blast wrong convoy
Mission Creep In Libya: It Has Begun
Syrian Forces Kill At Least 20 In Largest Protests Yet
Ahmadinejad: ‘A Mideast Without Israel and America Now Possible’
Pakistan: 300 Suicide Bombers Trained in North Waziristan Camp…
Hamas Is Moving Toward War With Israel
What is new is a shift in the strategic situation. The recent upheavals in the Arab world have emboldened revolutionary Islamists and Hamas most of all. Its close ally, the Muslim Brotherhood, can operate freely in Egypt. There is much support for Islamism in the Egyptian army. And even the “moderate” presidential candidate Muhammad ElBaradei said that Egypt would go to war if Israel attacked the Gaza Strip.
I’m sure his far-left base will be protesting this hypocrisy. . .on second thought, maybe not.
Historic Day: Israel’s Iron Dome Defense System Intercepts Gaza Terror Rockets
Obama Admin Training Thousands of Arab “Activists” to Evade Security Forces…
You know, because these Middle East revolts have turned out so well and in no way were hijacked by Islamists.
Twelfth Child Dies After Brazilian Mass Shooting; Shooter A Jihadi?
Paul Tustain: Gold Is Sending A Signal That The Monetary System Is In Grave Danger
US News:
Report: Budget agreement for $39 billion in cuts may be imminent; Update: Sources tell ABC deal is done; Update: “This is the best deal we could get out of them”; Update: No funding for abortion in D.C.
Budget Deal Reached – Ho Hum; Real Battle Can Now Begin
This Is What Currency Failure Looks Like
A Must Listen! Levin on Obama not funding military by executive order: ‘This is what Saul Alinsky Marxists do’
“Now listen to me folks, with a simple signature the president can ensure our military personal, who are already at enormous risk, both personal and financial, and sacrifice so much, and so do their families, will be protected financially – with a signature,” Levin said. “And he won’t do it. Reagan did it. Clinton did it. But Obama won’t do it. Now why do you think that is?”
*snip*
“Because he wants military families, many of whom have loved ones serving in combat on the battlefield overseas upset – he wants them upset so they will call members of Congress demanding trillions of dollars in red ink,” Levin continued. “This is what Saul Alinsky Marxists do. I do not believe that this president has sufficient respect for the American Armed Forces. I never have believed it, just like I don’t believe he has sufficient respect for law enforcement, but this damn well proves it.”
Indifference to the Troops (Update: Norton Speaks!)
Yesterday Patrick brought forth accusations that Obama was deliberately withholding military pay as a political maneuver against Republicans. It was yet another example of budget Kabuki.
But a word of advice to the Democrats. If you are going to play this game, you have to be really careful what you say and do. For instance, Representative Rogers (R-Ky) proposed a bill to fund our troops during the shutdown, and this was the Office of Management and Budget’s official response:
The Administration strongly opposes House passage of H.R. 1363, making appropriations for the Department of Defense for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2011, and for other purposes….
After giving the Congress more time by signing short-term extensions into law, the President believes that we need to put politics aside and work out our differences for a bill that covers the rest of the fiscal year. This bill is a distraction from the real work that would bring us closer to a reasonable compromise for funding the remainder of Fiscal Year 2011 and avert a disruptive Federal Government shutdown that would put the Nation’s economic recovery in jeopardy.
You got that? A bill ensuring that our military gets paid is a distraction. Nice. That sound you just heard was a million Democrats doing a facepalm.
The unions are making damn sure they are getting theirs…Obama the Slave Master: Government Employees union sues Regime to insure they get paid. . .
Moran generally has a problem with his constituent veterans getting all uppity with him. He has previously expressed his belief that a 24-year veteran opposing him in an election did not perform any kind of “public service.” Unlike Moran, of course. Who’s been in the shit in the Dupont Circle Theater of War.
Video: US House Descends Into Booing, Chanting During Budget ‘Debate’
My five-year-old is more mature than Rep. Sanchez.
Video of Sen Boxer(D-CA) To GOP: “Respect The Fact” That Dems Control WH & Senate
Earth to Boxer – respect the fact that your party took a bloodbath in November and that the only reason Democrats were largely spared in the Senate is because all of you weren’t up for re-election. The voters, as they say, have spoken, and indeed quite loudly. Too bad Boxer is hearing none of them
DeMint: Democrats want shutdown to distract from leadership failures
Civility Watch: Democrats Can’t Help Themselves From Pushing The Murder Button
Nancy Pelosi’s ‘Starving Seniors’ Math Just a Little Off
At the Washington Post, Glenn Kessler in his “Fact Checker” column breaks down the numbers. Read the whole thing to discover that the source data for Pelosi’s claims came from the busiest agency in Washington, DC: “The Institute for Facts and Figures I Pulled Out of My Butt.”
Pelosi: When will Republicans take back their party and force it to share my values?
Remember, this is who House Democrats wanted in charge of the caucus after she delivered them to total destruction in November. They could have started new with Hoyer or an up-and-comer, but she was too “effective” to spare. Which, I guess, explains why she’s hundreds of miles away from the House floor tonight. Values.
Shutdown Threat Tests Obama’s Leadership Skills
Oh, wait, sorry, the headline for Dan Balz’s Washington Post opinion piece says “style,” not “skills.” Surprised? I’m not. Kinda hard to discuss skills that a person lacks. One would think that a former community organizer would posses some leadership skills, yet, I suppose whipping up some people who are agitated to begin with is quite a bit different from being the CEO of a nation.
Hey Obama, You Do Realize That You’re Responsible for the Shutdown if it Happens, Dontcha?
The only reason that they are in a pickle is because they utterly failed to pass a fricking budget last year even though they controlled the White House, the Senate, and the House of Representatives. There’s no way around it, fellers: You stunk up the joint worse than the enema man, Snoopy Poopy Poop Dogg, and Alan Simpson together.This marks the only time since current budget-process rules were adopted in 1974 that a budget didn’t get done. Nice going, Dems. Regardless of who voters end up blaming this time around, in your heart, you know you suck.
Of course Obama wants a budget fight
This budget should have been passed 7 months ago.
Democrats could have gotten everything they wanted.
Byt a cynical and manipulative president dragged this thing out.
Nixon would doff his hat to Obama’s ingenuity.
But it will backfire.
Watch.
Now and then: government shutdown
Obama vacations while the country burns-With Government Shutdown Looming… Obama Plans Weekend Getaway
‘What I did for summer, fall, winter, and spring vacation’
President Obama also found time to hit the links as the massive disaster unfolded in Japan, so it’s not fair to say he’s unfocused.
Does the Obama daily calendar strike you as representing a man concerned with unemployment? Or the budget shutdown and its impact on the troops? Or the yawning budget deficit? Our our bleeding borders and a nascent civil war in Mexico?
His own calendar paints Obama as a lazy ideologue, one concerned more with campaigning, enjoying the trappings of office, and demagoguing his political opponents.
Breaking: Obama 2012 Campaign Poster!
From rdbrewer in the sidebar, he keeps on making the case that the Department of Energy must be eliminated.
“It interferes with and takes away our choices on what kind of showers we want, what kind of toilets we want. What kind of light bulbs we want. But most of the Department of Energy is an impediment to producing energy. Not one barrel of oil is produced by the Department of Energy. But the Department of Energy stops a lot of oil from being produced,” Paul said.
I agree. I didn’t used to, not because I loved the DOE but because I thought it was outside the Overton Windown. I don’t anymore. I think it’s merely an uphill fight.
Paul’s basic idea to eliminate the nonessential cabinet-level departments is a good one.
Of course the Democrats would much prefer that the US is not able to defend itself. Right now they are doing everything they can NOT to. Don’t believe me? Just look at the Mexican border and the way they appease and assist the Islamists and the Anti-American radical left. Reforming entitlements is key to a strong military
Here in Washington, Rep. Paul Ryan didn’t talk about Britain or cruise missiles when he unveiled his path-breaking budget proposal this week. But the new House Budget Committee chairman could not have been clearer: In coming years, the Big Three entitlement programs — Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security — will consume the United States’ budget. By sometime around 2050, if increases in the costs of those programs continue unchecked, they will eat up every single tax dollar collected by the federal government.
Long before that, if trends continue, there will be little money left to defend the United States, whose military leaders might find themselves carefully hoarding a few remaining cruise missiles. Everything will go to pay for health care and pensions.
The GOP, Democrats and why Taxpayer funded planned parenthood & NPR matters
If taxpayer money goes to Planned Parenthood a portion of that money will end up as democratic contributions or on “issue” ads supporting democrats, all funded by the treasury.
If taxpayer money goes to NPR a portion of that money will end up as democratic contributions or on stories spinning issue favoring liberals, all funded by the treasury.
If no taxpayer money goes to Planned Parenthood or NPR that money remains in the treasury to reduce the deficit.
That’s why the democrats are fighting so hard, they are fighting to preserve a source of taxpayer-funded contributions and media.
In related news…Flashback: 1957 Mike Wallace Interviews Margaret Sanger
The Democrats’ Shameful Rhetoric
Again, that is because Democrats don’t want to talk about their agenda. How can you come out and say, “We want to create a socialist welfare state in America” or “We want to raise taxes to the point that the economy stagnates and American businesses are driven overseas”? How about, “We want to turn the country over to union bosses who will run every company into bankruptcy the way they did GM and Chrysler”? Those aren’t exactly ideas to campaign on. That’s why all the Democrats have left is mockery.
ACORN Guilty Again; Obama DOJ Still Won’t Investigate
Last fall a federal investigation revealed that the crime-infested community organization embezzled millions of taxpayer dollars for “housing counseling” and destroyed documents to hide the fraud. The probe, conducted by the inspector general for Housing and Urban Development (HUD) also determined that ACORN violated federal laws and policies by spending its “housing counseling” funds to pay the salaries of its employees, even after they were terminated.
Incredibly, the Obama Justice Department has failed to conduct a criminal probe of ACORN, which has assumed a new identity (“restructured” and “rebranded”) to shed its criminal history and keep its public funding. In fact, last spring Judicial Watch uncovered FBI records that reveal the Obama Justice Department actually killed a federal investigation of ACORN
Internal DOJ report on Black Panther dismissal leaked
To Steve Rosenbaum and Loretta King, if the New Black Panther party disclaims the actions of the two people at the polls, that disclaimer is good enough to dismiss a case. If the “N-word” is being used by an employee, by golly these two won’t let go of the employer. One more thing, if you want to see how badly Rosenbaum and King got jobbed by the Panther’s disclaimer, watch this video.
Freedom of Information? Fifteen Months Waiting for Four Blank Pages
I also know that for an administration which two years ago promised to be the most open and transparent administration in history, this is standard operating procedure. Indeed the Associated Press found the Obama administration has the worst FOIA response record of any presidency.
There’s no reason not to release the information Richard asked for unless you have something to hide, and certainly no reason to kick a routine request from a reporter all the way up to the secretary of Defense unless it’s something you really don’t want a reporter to know.
Maxine Waters, your scandal is showing
We shall see if the Obama administration purses this as the Bush Administration pursued the corruption of Republican Congressman Duke Cunningham who received a sentence of 8 1/2 years in prison when federal prosecutors were finished.
Obama promised higher energy costs. He wasn’t kidding
Proof Obama Is The Manchurian Candidate?
Obama: If You’re Not Rich, You’re SOL
There is one other aspect of Obama’s foolish response that I have not seen commented upon. Rising energy costs do not just affect the price of gasoline at the pump. Every product and every service that the man who asked the question buys, requires energy. When the cost of energy rises, the price of every commodity and service rises with it–which is to say that we all become poorer. Obama says the man should trade in his car–even though, for all he knows, the man is driving a Prius–but what is he supposed to do about, for example, rising grocery prices? Stop eating? Or trade in his bread for…you know, pointing out the absurdities in Barack Obama’s logic has gotten to be too easy.
A Must Read-The Attack of the Cash Register
If prices start rising across the board the winter of 2011 could very well be the equivalent of Napoleon’s terrible winter of 1812, when the Grand Armee froze on its overextended advance. In President Obama’s case — with his simultaneous attempts at socialized medicine, cap and trade, and Mideast foreign policy — we may have seen the high-water market of his left-wing ideology. That may still be popular among the intellectuals, but it has been in practice disastrous for the poor. It has been especially catastrophic for blacks and Hispanics.
Just as Napoleon found he could not feed the Grand Armee in burned-out, desolate Moscow, will Barack Obama discover that he can’t sustain Hope and Change on itself? “We are the people we’ve been waiting for!” Yes. But you need the people you haven’t been waiting for to pay the bill.
Would you buy a new car from this man?
Let’s just say that Obama lacks the common touch. Even before our current hard times, you may recall, Obama was complaining about the high price of arugula. Before an Iowa farm audience in mid-2007 Obama lamented: “Anybody gone into Whole Foods lately and see what they charge for arugula? I mean, they’re charging a lot of money for this stuff.” Nobody knows the troubles he’s seen.
The AP scrubbed from its story Obama’s advice about buying a new car to the gentleman with the large family. The AP has now posted the story in rewritten form. Glenn Reynolds preserved the original story in a screenshot he has posted. Glenn comments that the “memory hole” doesn’t work very well any more, but I’m not sure it needs to. The AP is going above and beyond the call of duty. In any event, Drudge links to this AP story by Darlene Superville with the relevant quotes.
Democrats: Dump your trash on Boehner’s lawn
Considering that Boehner as Speaker is the second in line (after the vice president) for the presidency, this may be a federal crime.
I trust that the Secret Service will visit the DNC offices in Washington to interview the suspects.
President Obama should personally apologize to John Boehner and then — as head of the Democratic Party — publicly denounce and apologize for the Democratic National Committee’s garbage.
Otherwise, Barack Obama is personally endorsing this.
Democrats must fire the DNC chairman — along with the morons who came up with this idea and posted it.
And I did (well, voted for Palin anyhow and the bozo who headed that ticket), and –Wonder of Wonders– They Were Right!
Look for the Union Label/The Badger Rebellion:
Read. The. Whole. Thing. What Wisconsin’s Judicial Election Means
So, at the end of the day, in an election the left poured money and energy in to, and had the media faithfully singing from their hymnals… we won.In Wisconsin.
I don’t know — I think based upon this Wisconsin is officially “Lean GOP” in November.
And, of course, we are all relieved to know that Media Matters has already cleared up any idea that there was any voter fraud in this election. So there can be no doubt Conservative Judge Prosser won. And that he will also be the one to decide if the Republicans acted properly in passing the law limiting the Public Union’s collective bargaining privileges.How long will it take Media Matters and the loony left to start charging voter fraud and crying foul now that their left wing darling looks to be down for the count?
Hah… MoveOn.org Fundraises Off of Kloppenburg’s “Victory”
It’s just too bad Kloppenburg lost, huh?
They Have Not Thought Through The Conspiracy Theory
Oh, Those Awesome Public Sector Unions
In Other News…
Bank of America to Cancel State of Illinois’ Company Cards
Now, if you were a state employee, would you be willing to use your personal credit cards or cash for state business? Not if you didn’t want a one-way ticket to bad credit town.
What isn’t clear is whether this effects just the Department of Public Health or the State as a whole (calls to government spokespersons have yet to be returned with answers to those questions since last week).
All of this despite a 67% income tax increase has still left the State of Illinois unable to pay its bills on time and a Governor who insists cutting spending is just plain wrong.
The unraveling of Barry Soetoro, a/k/a Barack Hussein Obama II
WTF? Government Can Read Any Of Your Old Emails Without A Warrant?
That’s insane. That’s insane.
Generally these questions turn on the question of whether a person has a “reasonable expectation of privacy” when making a communication.
All I can say is that I honestly believed that the government wasn’t allowed to snoop in my email. I thought it was private. I realize any company can break its own privacy rules and read it themselves, but I thought there would be measures to punish that if it happened. Same as anyone at the Post Office could steam open a letter of mine, if he wanted.
Who thought that their email was Anything Goes for government snoops? I didn’t. And if I’d known that, I wouldn’t ever have used it at all.
Does America Have a De Facto State Religion?
Supposedly we don’t have a state religion. Such a thing is forbidden by the Constitution. But increasingly, we do have a de facto state religion — Islam.
Because when state-funded, quasi-governmental institutions protect one religion and punish those who insult it, but allow any other religion to be mocked, reviled, and even blasphemed against, what else would you call that?
How would a true official state religion be handled any differently? We’d see the exact same treatment — the official religion would be protected by legal and quasi-legal measures, whereas other religions would be treated as inferior and therefore proper subjects for mockery and blasphemy.
Dhimmitude — catch the fever.
Leftist Group Honors Whitman’s Former Illegal Alien Housekeeper at Dinner
Overpaid illegal alien and liar Nicky Diaz sued Meg Whitman for $6,210 during the campaign last year. She was upset that Whitman abused her by not buying her baby a present.
California businesses head for Texas
Lower taxes, less regulation and just as much sunshine.
Why not head for Texas?
MSM Circus and Celebutard Side Show:
Tingles: Trump Doesn’t Like Obama “Because He’s Black”…
Tingles never fails to play the race card.
Just previously, Moore had proclaimed that the election was already over because Kloppenburg had declared victory — a practice he then projects upon Republicans. If it’s that easy, then elections aren’t needed anyway. All you have to do is file as a candidate and then announce that you’ve won.
Video: Media Fawn Over ‘Grown Up,’ ‘Adult’ Obama vs. ‘Childish’ Tea Party
Prior to this week, President Obama had been so detached from the budget debate that some in his own party have openly criticized him. Obama, West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin declared in early March, has “failed to lead this debate or offer a serious proposal for spending and cuts that he would be willing to fight for.”
Yet when the President chose to parachute into the budget talks earlier this week, most of the mainstream media neglected to remember his long absence, but instead acted like White House stenographers in praising his “adult” and “grown-up” approach — conveying the obvious implication that House Republicans and/or the Tea Party have been acting like children.
Global Warmening:
Climate Morons Discuss Mounting Primary Challenges And Collecting Scalps
So, they’ve spent between $200 and $300 million in the last year or so, and accomplished nothing? In fact, they’ve accomplished turning even more people off from their cult. And these are the people that want to be in charge of tax policy and controlling people? They can’t even accomplish their own goals with massive amounts of money.
And, think what they could have done with that money to help the environment instead of policy advocacy and agitation. How many species they could have protected. But, again, the anthropogenic global warming movement is not about protecting the planet, saving nature, it’s about power and control.
Fun and Interesting Stuff:
This is not fun to contemplate but this is written by a guy who survived the economic and political chaos that was Argentina. It is well worth reading.-Lessons from Argentina’s economic collapse
