Friday, June 10, 2005
TAKE A DAY OFF AND THINGS JUST START PILING UP!
Holy Sh*t! Where to begin? So much stuff! Lets start with the report by the Inspector General of the Justice Dept., released yesterday. According to the report by IG Glenn Fine, the FBI had at least five opportunities to stop the 9/11 bombings, and failed to act. See the whole story HERE.
Then, according to US News and World Report, thar's the swamp deal. You may recall the Bush bros., Prez and Gov, bragging about a deal to save the Everglades from mineral and oil exploration a couple of years ago. Under the deal, the Dept. of the Interior would purchase the mineral rights from the current owner for 120 million dollars. Seemed like a great deal, and even those most loathe to credit Bush for anything, the environmentalists, applauded. However, after a scathing report from the Interior Dept's Inspector General, Earl Devaney, Congress has killed the deal.
The intended recipients of $120 million was the Collier family of Naples, Florida. Years ago, this family sold 400,000 acres of Everglades swamp to the Interior Dept. Bear in mind that the Collier family has always been one of the largest financial supporters of the various Bush family political campaigns. The administration was willing to pay out this phenomenal sum in spite of the facts:
a) US Geological Survey says chances of finding significant mineral reserves there are slim to none
b) the Dept. of the Interior had already purchased those rights in a deal years earlier
An angry Sen. Charles Grassley, Senate Finance Committee Chairman, is scheduling hearings on the matter next week. Stay tuned!
Perhaps some other angry Senator might want to look into this one....
(from NY Times) A White House official who once led the oil industry’s fight against limits on greenhouse gases has repeatedly edited government climate reports in ways that play down links between such emissions and global warming, according to internal documents. In handwritten notes on drafts of several reports issued in 2002 and 2003, the official, Philip A. Cooney, removed or adjusted descriptions of climate research that government scientists and their supervisors, including some senior Bush administration officials, had already approved.
And then there is the Downing Street Memo. This memo hit the desks of top UK officials a couple of days before George W. Bush declared he had no plans to invade Iraq. If you want to know why we are in such a mess there now, this one paragraph should explain it nicely:
"C reported on his recent talks in Washington. There was a perceptible shift in attitude. Military action was now seen as inevitable. Bush wanted to remove Saddam, through military action, justified by the conjunction of terrorism and WMD. BUT THE INTELLIGENCE AND FACTS WERE BEING FIXED ARUND THE POLICY. The NSC had no patience with the UN route, and no enthusiasm for publishing material on the Iraqi regime's record. THERE WAS LITTLE DISCUSSION IN WASHINGTON OF THE AFTERMATH OF MILITARY ACTION."** See the entire Downing Street Memo HERE (you may have to view a brief ad first).
** caps mine...gwb
Now cooking at THE CHURCH POTLUCK: Chocolate Sheet Cake. Coming soon: Pork BBQ for a Bunch!
Then, according to US News and World Report, thar's the swamp deal. You may recall the Bush bros., Prez and Gov, bragging about a deal to save the Everglades from mineral and oil exploration a couple of years ago. Under the deal, the Dept. of the Interior would purchase the mineral rights from the current owner for 120 million dollars. Seemed like a great deal, and even those most loathe to credit Bush for anything, the environmentalists, applauded. However, after a scathing report from the Interior Dept's Inspector General, Earl Devaney, Congress has killed the deal.
The intended recipients of $120 million was the Collier family of Naples, Florida. Years ago, this family sold 400,000 acres of Everglades swamp to the Interior Dept. Bear in mind that the Collier family has always been one of the largest financial supporters of the various Bush family political campaigns. The administration was willing to pay out this phenomenal sum in spite of the facts:
a) US Geological Survey says chances of finding significant mineral reserves there are slim to none
b) the Dept. of the Interior had already purchased those rights in a deal years earlier
An angry Sen. Charles Grassley, Senate Finance Committee Chairman, is scheduling hearings on the matter next week. Stay tuned!
Perhaps some other angry Senator might want to look into this one....
(from NY Times) A White House official who once led the oil industry’s fight against limits on greenhouse gases has repeatedly edited government climate reports in ways that play down links between such emissions and global warming, according to internal documents. In handwritten notes on drafts of several reports issued in 2002 and 2003, the official, Philip A. Cooney, removed or adjusted descriptions of climate research that government scientists and their supervisors, including some senior Bush administration officials, had already approved.
And then there is the Downing Street Memo. This memo hit the desks of top UK officials a couple of days before George W. Bush declared he had no plans to invade Iraq. If you want to know why we are in such a mess there now, this one paragraph should explain it nicely:
"C reported on his recent talks in Washington. There was a perceptible shift in attitude. Military action was now seen as inevitable. Bush wanted to remove Saddam, through military action, justified by the conjunction of terrorism and WMD. BUT THE INTELLIGENCE AND FACTS WERE BEING FIXED ARUND THE POLICY. The NSC had no patience with the UN route, and no enthusiasm for publishing material on the Iraqi regime's record. THERE WAS LITTLE DISCUSSION IN WASHINGTON OF THE AFTERMATH OF MILITARY ACTION."** See the entire Downing Street Memo HERE (you may have to view a brief ad first).
** caps mine...gwb
Now cooking at THE CHURCH POTLUCK: Chocolate Sheet Cake. Coming soon: Pork BBQ for a Bunch!
