Friday, September 28, 2012
Barker's Newsbites: Friday, September 28, 2012
Today's musical interlude...
(*WINK*)
So... did you catch all of yesterday's newsbites, folks? My advice? Make sure you do.
Mary and I are headin' up to Boston later today so newsbites will be a bit abbreviated today and there'll be no weekend newsbites.
Anyway... have a great weekend, everyone!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
5 comments:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-19750039
Armed militants have attacked a prison in the Iraqi city of Tikrit, killing at least 12 guards and freeing about 90 inmates, officials have told the BBC.
Some of the escaped inmates were reportedly al-Qaeda members.
* NO... I'M NOT BLAMING OBAMA! NOR HILLARY! NOR ERIC HOLDER OR LEON PENETTA...
* JUST POINTING OUT THE OBVIOUS - IRAQ ISN'T EXACTLY STABLE. WHATEVER THE "MISSION" WAS... IT HASN'T BEEN "ACCOMPLISHED."
* YEAH... A SHOT AT BUSH.
http://www.washingtonguardian.com/big-brother-listening
* AND THE HEADLINE IS...
"ACLU records show 64% growth in electronic spying since president took office"
The Justice Department's use of electronic devices to intercept phone numbers, email addresses and online information has climbed by 64% since 2009, according to a study of records released under the Freedom of Information Act.
* LISTEN... THIS MIGHT BE POSITIVE NEWS... IT MIGHT BE NO THREAT TO CIVIL LIBERTIES AND A BOON TO ANTI-TERRORISM. AND YET... REMEMBER HOW NEWS LIKE THIS WAS PORTRAYED DURING THE BUSH YEARS?
* HEY... MY POINT... MAYBE IT'S NOT "GOOD NEWS." (*SHRUG*) MAYBE IT IS. (*ANOTHER SHRUG*) BUT NOTE HOW ONCE AGAIN WHEN OBAMA "DOUBLES DOWN" ON BUSH POLICIES THAT WERE HUGE "PROBLEMS" FOR MANY ON THE LEFT (AND IN THE MSM) THERE'S NOT THE SAME REACTION FROM THESE SAME QUARTERS THAT'S YOU'D EXPECT WERE TODAY'S PRESIDENT TO BE... SAY... JOHN S. MCCAIN DOING THE DOUBLING DOWN.
* JUST RAISING THE POINT, FOLKS... JUST RAISING THE POINT...
Government data shows that from 2009 to 2011, the combined number of court orders for so-called pen registers and trap and trace devices on phones rose from 23,535 in 2009 to 37,616 in 2011, according to the American Civil Liberties Union.
Though used far less frequently, the combined number of court orders targeting individuals' email and network communications data rose from 360 in 2009 to 1,661 through the end of 2011. When combined, the total intercepts represent a 64% increase.
* AGAIN... I'M NOT MAKING A JUDGMENT ON THE MERITS - NOT WITHOUT MORE INFO. I'M FOCUSED ON THE REACTION... OR LACK THEREOF. NOTE, FOLKS... THIS IS THE "WASHINGTON GUARDIAN" REPORTING... NOT 60 MINUTES... NOT THE NIGHTLY NEWS... NOT SOMETHING DISCUSSED ON "THE VIEW" AS MATTERS SUCH AS THIS WERE REGULARLY "DISCUSSED" BACK WHEN BUSH WAS PRESIDENT.
(*SHRUG*)
The Justice Department says civil liberties are safeguarded by obtaining court approval to use such surveillance.
* AND... er... WHAT ELSE ARE THEY GONNA SAY...?!?!
(*SNORT*)
An ACLU staff attorney, Catherine Crump, said the process for these less intrusive warrants is a "rubber stamp" devoid of any kind of meaningful court review.
* I TEND TO BELIEVE THIS... (JUST AS I BELIEVE THIS WAS ALSO TRUE DURING THE BUSH YEARS...)
http://sacramento.cbslocal.com/2012/09/27/campbell-soup-is-shutting-down-sacramento-plant/
The Campbell Soup plant in Sacramento is closing as of July 2013 as the company says it is taking steps to “improve supply chain productivity,” according to a company release.
Employees were told of the closure during a 6 a.m. meeting Thursday at the plant.
“We employ about 700 people at the Sacramento plant and unfortunately those jobs will be eliminated,” said Campbell Soup Company spokesperson Anthony Sanzio.
(*PURSED LIPS*)
The company is also closing a spice plant in South Plainfield, New Jersey.
* ON A PERSONAL NOTE: A FRIEND CALLED ME LAST NIGHT TO LET ME KNOW THAT HER EX-HUSBAND JUST LOST HIS JOB (A MACHINIST - 10 YEARS WITH THE COMPANY) IN THEIR MOST RECENT ROUND OF DOWNSIZING.
* FOLKS... THINGS AREN'T GETTING BETTER. THEY'RE JUST NOT. YOU KNOW THIS!
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2209777/Saturday-Night-Live-cast-pokes-fun-President-Obama-showing-bank-executives-working-Burger-King.html
* AND THE HEADLINE IS...
"'Are you better off than you were four years ago'? SNL mocks President with comic line-up featuring victims of struggling economy"
* UNFORTUNATELY... WHILE IT'S TRUE THE SKIT MOCKED OBAMA... IN THE END THE MESSAGE WAS "WELL... YEAH... THINGS SUCK... BUT LET'S RE-ELECT HIM ANYWAY.
* OH... AND BY THE WAY... I WATCHED THE SPECIAL LAST NIGHT! I'M SPEAKING AS SOMEONE WHO "WAS THERE."
(*SMIRK*)
* WOW...!!! I JUST READ THE ENTIRE ARTICLE! THE FRIGGIN' AUTHOR TOTALLY FAILS TO MENTION THE END OF THE SKIT... THE END WHERE THE "FOCUS GROUP" MAKES IT CLEAR THAT... er... OBAMA IS STILL THE SUPERIOR CHOICE OVER ROMNEY.
* UNFRIGGIN'BELIEVABLE! WATCH THE FULL SKIT AND YOU'LL SEE WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT!
http://cnsnews.com/news/article/stimulated-algae-slime-blooms-reflecting-pool-after-feds-spend-34m-improve-quality-and
Massive quantities of algae are now blooming in the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, where the federal government has just spent $34 million in "stimulus" money to make the pool "sustainable" and "improve the quality and appearance of the water."
* FOLKS... YA CAN'T MAKE THIS SHIT UP...
* YES, FOLKS... THIRTY-FOUR MILLION... MILLION WITH AN "M"... THIRTY-FOUR MILLION AS IN $34,000,000
Carol Johnson, an National Parks Service spokesperson, [said,] "We did not expect this magnitude of algae but we’re now dealing with it ... the algae bloom is simply a 'maintenance problem,' not a failure of the multi-million repair project."
* LET'S HOPE SO. (STILL... WOULDN'T YOU LIKE TO KNOW WHAT THEY DID THAT COST $34,000,000...???
“It’s not a health hazard, it’s just something that we’re going to have to play around with the system until we get it right,” she added.
[T]he water in the old pool did not circulate, "On occasion...the pool would emit a foul smell in August, and at times become unhealthy for waterfowl," NPS says on its website.
The new pool is filled with re-circulated, non-potable water that is filtered and pumped in from the nearby Tidal Basin. When the pool needs to be cleaned - bird droppings are a major problem - the water can be "returned to the Tidal Basin," NPS said.
Johnson said the ozone level when the pool reopened “was not high enough” to prevent the algae from establishing itself.
“We now have adjusted the ozone levels and it does appear to be working. A lot of the algae is dying.”
* OK... LET'S HOPE SO... BUT, AGAIN... $34,000,000...??? THAT'S A LOT OF MONEY, FOLKS... A LOT OF MONEY...
* ANYWAY... I'M OUTTA HERE, FOLKS! OFF TO BOSTON!
Post a Comment