April 6, 2010 archive

Muse in the Morning

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Muse in the Morning


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Zwei…

Coal Mining Disasters: A Comparison

I do the news practically every day and like all editors I control what I cover- I don’t do missing white women and high speed helicopter chases for example.  I don’t do industrial accidents except to point out the greed, stupidity, and disregard for human life and the environment of the owners.  It was with that in mind that I elected to cover the recent Chinese Coal Mining Disaster (29, 30, 31) because they have a notorious reputation (pet food and drywall anyone?).

And yet yesterday we had a miracle that I duly reported

2 China hails ‘miracle’ as 115 rescued from flooded mine

by Marianne Barriaux, AFP

1 hr 10 mins ago

XIANGNING, China (AFP) – More than 110 workers were pulled out alive from a Chinese coal mine on Monday in what has been hailed as a miracle rescue over a week after the men were trapped by an underground flood.

So far, 115 survivors have been rescued from the mine in China’s coal-mining heartland of Shanxi province, state media said. Some apparently survived on tree bark and at least one worker strapped himself to the wall with a belt.

The news from Shanxi, where 153 workers were trapped when the unfinished mine flooded on March 28, was a rare bright spot for an industry known for its poor safety record and more than 2,600 deaths recorded last year.

Bravo!

Today we have this-

25 dead in W.Va. mine blast, worst since 1984

By LAWRENCE MESSINA, Associated Press Writer

1 min ago

MONTCOAL, W.Va. – Rescue teams planned to search again for four workers missing in a coal mine where a massive explosion killed 25 in the worst U.S. mining disaster in more than two decades, though officials said Tuesday that the chances were slim that the miners survived.

The suspended rescue mission would resume after bore holes could be drilled to allow for toxic gases to be ventilated from Massey Energy Co.’s sprawling Upper Big Branch mine about 30 miles south of Charleston, state and federal safety officials said.

“All we have left is hope, and we’re going to continue to do what we can,” Kevin Stricklin, an administrator for the federal Mine Safety and Health Administration, said at a news conference. “But I’m just trying to be honest with everybody and say that the situation does look dire.”

Which I will also cover because of the greed, stupidity, and disregard for human life and the environment of the owner.

h/t Attaturk.

Dear homicidal soldiers: don’t use EtOH to scrub blood!

Some people will surely say that I don’t support the troops.  Hogwash.  I’ll prove I do with sound advice.

After initially claiming that two pregnant women and a teenage girl killed in a US Special Forces raid on an Afghan home in Khataba in February had been discovered bound and slain by the Americans, the US military has admitted that they were actually shot and killed by those US troops–who then tried to cover up their “mistake” by carving the bullets out of the bodies with knives, removing other incriminating bullets from the compound’s walls, and then washing away the bloody evidence with alcohol.

Using alcohol to wash off blood, especially in larger quantities, is incredibly amateurish, ineffective, and time-consuming.  

Use water.

Kthnxbai.

Yours,

Winston Wolf

PS. Is this instant coffee?

Double-PS: don’t kill people if you don’t speak their language.

Triple-PS: I know this will slow down the rate of “progress,” but a job worth doing…

The quadruple: Oh, well then, fuck, it’s okay:

“The force went to the compound based on reliable information in search of a Taleban insurgent, and believed that the two men posed a threat to their personal safety. We now understand that the men killed were only trying to protect their families.”

Dear homicidal soldiers: don’t use EtOH to scrub blood!

Some people will surely say that I don’t support the troops.  Hogwash.  I’ll prove I do with sound advice.

After initially claiming that two pregnant women and a teenage girl killed in a US Special Forces raid on an Afghan home in Khataba in February had been discovered bound and slain by the Americans, the US military has admitted that they were actually shot and killed by those US troops–who then tried to cover up their “mistake” by carving the bullets out of the bodies with knives, removing other incriminating bullets from the compound’s walls, and then washing away the bloody evidence with alcohol.

Using alcohol to wash off blood is incredibly amateurish, ineffective, and time-consuming.  Use water.

Kthnxbai.

Yours,

Winston Wolf

PS. Is this instant coffee?

Federal judge slams Obama administration lawyers’ defense of illegal wiretapping

Federal judge slams Obama administration lawyers’ defense of illegal wiretapping, by John Andrews, via World Socialist Web Site:

A federal judge has rebuffed the Obama administration’s latest attempt to defend illegal Bush-era eavesdropping, ruling that a now defunct US Islamic charity, Al-Haramain, and two of its lawyers are entitled to money damages because government agents failed to obtain a warrant before tapping their phones.

Late Night Karaoke

Open Thread

Drunkenbloggin: “The sun also rises”

The past:

The present:

The future:

How did it come to this?

Aragorn: Ride out with me.  Ride out and meet them.

Denethor: For death and glory?

Aragorn: FOR ROHAN.  For your people.

Gimli:  The sun is rising.

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Gandalf: Look to my coming, on first light on the fifth day.  Look to the east.

..

Denethor:  THE HORN OF HELM HAMMERHAND WILL SOUND IN THE DEEP, ONE LAST TIME.

Fell deeds awake.  Now for wrath.  Now for Ruin.  AND THE RED DAWN.

As media and politicians attack unions… It’s right to strike

Original article: http://socialistworker.org.uk/…

Though this is a British publication, by British socialists who don’t like to play much with the other socialists, I heartily concur with the sentiment of the article.  We know Obama’s signiture piece of legislative action was a sell-out to the health insurance industry.  We know that his bailout of the auto industry was done with the insistance upon dropping the workers’ right to strike action during the next contract and included draconian cuts in pay and compensation.  We know that workers are faring badly under Obama, and probably will continue to do so.

Strikes are the workers’ forge and anvil.  If we are to rebuild our economy, it will be done on the backs of the workers, not the bosses or politicians.  It’s time to, as the old song says, srike while the iron is hot.

Tonight’s Sunset Open Thread

Cross-posted at Firefly-dreaming.

Hello on this wonderful New York Monday. The sky was clear, sunny and warm most of the day but in the late afternoon a few clouds rolled in to offer up a little drama.

Below the fold I will attempt to kibitz through tonight’s Bronx sunset.

Butler v. Duke Open Thread

Well if you’re a fan of Arkansas Pine-Bluff, California, Perdue, Baylor, or West Virginia you’ll be rooting for Duke.

If you’re a fan of UTEP, Murray State, Syracuse, Kansas State, or Michigan State you’ll be rooting for Butler.

No shame in losing to the eventual champ after all.

If you want the underdog you’ll go for Butler.  I think Duke will win.

I’ll not attempt a liveblog, this is simply a place you can express yourself if you desire to.

Wikileaks: Reuters and kids as Collateral Damage

The man, dressed in a white shirt and dark pants, strides confidently down the middle of the suburban street, his camera bag slung over one shoulder, his co worker following behind, with other men in summer clothing ambling down the road.  He pauses to speak into his cell phone.

In the distance, helicopters hover.

Nearly 3 years later, what happened to him and companion as they walked to their next Reuters assignment is known.

(warning, graphic video below, noise and images, please do not view if you are prone to PTSD.)

A written commentary on this story may be seen here at Democratic Underground:

http://www.democraticundergrou…

The Columbia Journalism Review wrote about the release of the video by Wikileaks at the National Press Club here:  http://www.cjr.org/the_kicker/…

the video is online here http://collateralmurder.com/

An epluribusmedia writeup by Michael Collins is here:

http://discuss.epluribusmedia….

In Iraq and Afghanistan, by this year, there have been 4705 American and Coalition forces killed in Iraq, and 1713 killed in Afghanistan, with the majority coming from the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada.  There have also been at least 462 private contractors killed  http://icasualties.org/Iraq/Co…

At least 139 journalists have been killed in Iraq between the years 2003 and 2009.  Of those, 7 were embedded with the military, and 132 were non embedded, or “unilateral.”   An astounding 117 of those 139 were Iraqis, with the rest being European or from other Arab nations, with just 2 being from the United States.

http://www.cpj.org/reports/200…

The Week in Editorial Cartoons – Of Human Bondage

Crossposted at Daily Kos

THE WEEK IN EDITORIAL CARTOONS

This weekly diary takes a look at the past week’s important news stories from the perspective of our leading editorial cartoonists (including a few foreign ones) with analysis and commentary added in by me.

When evaluating a cartoon, ask yourself these questions:

1. Does a cartoon add to my existing knowledge base and help crystallize my thinking about the issue depicted?

2. Does the cartoonist have any obvious biases that distort reality?

3. Is the cartoonist reflecting prevailing public opinion or trying to shape it?

The answers will help determine the effectiveness of the cartoonist’s message.

:: ::

Hypocrisy



Dave Granlund, Politicalcartoons.com, Buy this cartoon

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