Reported yesterday, in Asheville: A clothes sorter at a North Carolina charity generated a lot of goodwill when she turned in thousands of dollars she found in a sock. The Asheville Citizen-Times reported that Goodwill worker Jocelyn Garnace found more than $5,000 cash in a sock wrapped up in a blanket. This afternoon, in Madison: A device that could be … Read More
BP CEO Tries To Minimize Oil Spill, Says Something Stupid
Tony Hayward, CEO of BP, in an interview with The Guardian: In an bullish interview with the Guardian at BP's crisis centre in Houston, Hayward insisted that the leaked oil and the estimated 400,000 gallons of dispersant that BP has pumped into the sea to try to tackle the slick should be put in context. "The Gulf of Mexico is … Read More
How Much Oil Is Actually Being Spilled?
When the oil spill first occured, we were told it was about 1,000 barrels per day. Then BP upwardly revised its estimates a few days later… to 5,000 barrels per day, and that remains the official estimate. But within the past few days, we've been treated to video of the actual spill from deep underwater… And now we read this: … Read More
New Plans To Plug The Oil Spill Include “Top Hat” and “Junk Shot”
They have to try new things because the "Giant Dome" failed. By the way, I see a McSweeney's List in the offing, entitled: "Pornographic Term or Device to End Oil Spill?"
Big Hollywood Whine Of The Day
Jeffrey Jena at the conservative entertainment site, Big Hollywood: A few years ago one of the most culturally significant cities in the United States ended up under water and millions of Americans rushed to her aid. A lot of conservatives and liberals joined church and civic groups and headed to The Big Easy to help rebuild the city. The Hollywood … Read More
RIP Lena Horne
A class act: Lena Horne, the elegant and statuesque singer who broke down color barriers by becoming one of Hollywood's first African-American female stars, and who later made a triumphant return to Broadway, died on May 9 at New York-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center in New York. She was 92 and lived in Manhattan. Ms. Horne first came to prominence in … Read More
Here We Go Again: Another NYC Bomb?
BREAKING 1:34 pm….. 47th Street in NYC is being evacuated due to suspicious package…. UPDATE 1:36 pm…. CNN says all of Times Square is being evacuated UPDATE 1:55 pm… It's a suspicious cooler outside the Marriott…. or is it? UPDATE 2:18 pm… Opening back up. Must have been, well, a cooler. Apparently, a robot was deployed…. It was kind of … Read More
Dig A Little Deeper, NYT
An article on the front page of today's New York Times contains quotes from various conservation groups indicating that perhaps the oil spill isn't as bad as people think it is. Example: Other experts said that while the potential for catastrophe remained, there were reasons to remain guardedly optimistic. “The sky is not falling,” said Quenton R. Dokken, a marine … Read More
Question Of The Day
So…. why are small-government conservatives — you know, the ones who are always complaining that the federal government is inherently inept — so quick to complain that federal government didn't move, and isn't moving, fast enough on the Deepwater Horizon oil spill? You can't please these people: They didn't want the kind of government regulation that would have prevented such a … Read More
Quote Of The Day
Former Bush White House Press Secretary Dana Perino on the oil rigger explosion that led to the massive Gulf oil spill: “I'm not trying to introduce a conspiracy theory, but was this deliberate? You have to wonder if there was sabotage involved” Actually, Dana, it's pretty clear you are trying to introduce a conspiracy theory, one right up there with "Obama was … Read More
RIP, St. Vincent’s Hospital (1849-2010)
A well-known place to anyone who spent any significant time in Greenwich Village. A hospital which played important roles for both the sinking of the Titanic and the events of 9/11. Victim to the economic crisis. The New York Times has the obit.
The Oil Rig Explosion That Started It All
Look for stairs to get a sense of scale: The latest — President Obama visited Louisiana yesterday afternoon to observe the response effort to the BP oil spill, which he called a “potentially unprecedented environmental disaster.” “Your government will do whatever it takes, for as long as it takes, to stop this crisis,” he pledged. But Obama said taxpayers would … Read More
Fun Facts About The Oil Spill Off The Louisiana Gulf Coast
The sea of oil spewing from the mangled pipeline is already larger than 31 nations. This initial oil well explosion, which killed 11 men, occured when a contractor was cementing the well. Who was the contractor? Our old friend, Halliburton. As of now, the oil spilled equals about half of the Exxon Valdez. In another ten days, at the current rate of … Read More
Hey Sarah — How’s The Oily Drilly Thing Working Out For Ya?
That seems to be the refrain as the news goes from bad to worse: NEW ORLEANS — Government officials said late Wednesday night that oil might be leaking from a well in the Gulf of Mexico at a rate five times that suggested by initial estimates. In a hastily called news conference, Rear Adm. Mary E. Landry of the Coast … Read More