Scientists pressured politically

Half of the global warming related scientists felt political pressure from the Bush administration. I'm wondering how many evolution related scientists did.

The Democratic-controlled Congress on Tuesday stepped up its pressure on President Bush’s global warming strategy, hearing allegations of new political pressure on government scientists to downplay the threat of global warming.

Lawmakers received survey results of federal scientists that showed 46 percent felt pressure to eliminate the words “climate change,” “global warming” or similar terms from communications about their work.

The scientists also reported 435 instances of political interference in their work over the past five years.

Something's wrong with the local Democrats

Since the NJ state shut-down for the budget crisis, now our neighbor state of New York has a similar problem -- dispute between a Democratic Governor (Eliot Spitzer) and a Democratic legislature leader (Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver). Their dispute is more personal, about the selection of a new Comptroller.

Their deal called for having three former comptrollers screen the potential choices and then forward a list of qualified candidates to the Legislature for a vote. At least one of the former comptrollers’ preferred candidates was likely to be an assemblyman, the thinking went.

In the end, though, the newbie governor had the last laugh, as the panel forwarded the names of three candidates from outside the Assembly: William J. Mulrow, an investment banker who ran for comptroller in 2002 and who is close to Mr. Spitzer; Martha E. Stark, the New York City Finance Commissioner; and Howard S. Weitzman, the Nassau County comptroller.

Mr. Spitzer said all along that the panel could recommend “up to five” candidates, but Mr. Silver is now claiming that the agreement was for the panel to recommend five candidates, and that by offering only three the former comptrollers “did not conform” to the agreement.

Some rank-and-file members of the Assembly are doubly angry, because the State Constitution gives the Legislature the right to select the replacement for a comptroller who resigns, and gives no role to the governor. Because Assembly Democrats control the biggest bloc of votes, the choice would have effectively been theirs. Now they are grousing that Mr. Silver should not have ceded so much control to Mr. Spitzer.

It's a bit funny in this case. Indeed it should be something Governor doesn't have too much a say, but, naming a member of Assembly as the comptroller doesn't sound too much a good idea either. Why would they pick up such a fight with such a negative image, I mean naming someone among themselves to a neutral post? Doesn't that just sound bad?

Why will the troop surge in Iraq work?

Oh, this is gold. From AMERICAblog,

PELOSI: He's tried this two times — it's failed twice. I asked him at the White House, 'Mr. President, why do you think this time it's going to work?'

BUSH: Because I told them it had to.

PELOSI: Why didn't you tell them that the other two times?

I'm very interested in how Bush responded to it.

Why the oil price is dropping?

I mean, it surged right after the election, but it's now dropping again. And it is said that it's all Saudi Arabia's scheme against Iran.

Oil traders and others believe that the Saudi decision to let the price of oil tumble has more to do with Iran than economics.

Their belief has been reinforced in recent days as the Saudi oil minister has steadfastly refused calls for a special meeting of OPEC and announced that the nation is going to increase its production, which will send the price down even farther.

The trader notes that Iran, OPEC’s second largest producer, is “in trouble” both in the short and long term. Iran’s oil reserves, he notes, are declining more rapidly than Saudi Arabia’s and are more difficult to extract. While a barrel of oil costs the Saudis $2-3 to get out of the ground and to market, that same barrel costs Iran as much as $15-18.

There are domestic political consequences to such a convergence, note traders and officials in both the U.S. and Iran. Ahmadinejad was elected on campaign promises that he would end corruption and better distribute the nation’s oil wealth. He has been unable to do either; now, with declining oil revenues, his job will be even more difficult.

Internet now a powerful media in politics

I still remember people's doubt on Internet in 2004 -- after Howard Dean's defeat in presidential primaries. Now Internet is much more powerful than before, especially with YouTube and other video services. Ask George Allen if you don't believe it. Washington Post has an article on this, call it "YouTube effect," and the people involved includes Mitt Romney, George Allen, Hillary Clinton, John Edwards, John McCain, and Barack Obama. Gee, it's now a mainstream media, no longer something belongs to the elitists.

Gonzales' definition of activist judges

For those who don't defer to President's authority on national security. Geez, why didn't I think of such a clear definition?

Attorney General Alberto Gonzales says federal judges are unqualified to make rulings affecting national security policy, ramping up his criticism of how they handle terrorism cases.

In remarks prepared for delivery Wednesday, Gonzales says judges generally should defer to the will of the president and Congress when deciding national security cases. He also raps jurists who “apply an activist philosophy that stretches the law to suit policy preferences.”

I too think judicial activism exists, but not in the same form as Attorney General's. I think when a judge employs a rational basis which apparently not held by the Legislature is activism. As for a Constitutional issue, it should be up to the Court to make the decision. It's not about public policies, but Constitution.

Sen Allard (R-CO) will retire in 2008

Seems a good chance to pick up a seat.

Colorado Republican Sen. Wayne Allard will not run for a third term in 2008, he announced Monday at a press conference in the state capital of Denver.

Even without the self-imposed term limit hanging over his head, Allard faced the prospect of a difficult campaign next year. After years of Republican pre-eminence in the Mountain West state, Democrats have made significant gains in the past two election cycles, winning open-seat races for a Senate seat, the governor’s office and two U.S. House seats that had been held by Republicans, and wresting control of the state legislature from the GOP. Democratic strategists had previously stated that the Colorado race would be one of their top Senate targets in 2008, regardless of Allard’s decision.

This is not just a Republican seat -- Allard is the sponsor for the failed federal marriage discrimination amendment.

Troopers learned about their extension from their family

With Bush's "augmentation" (that's the exact word Rice used in Senate) of the Iraq war, the tours of NJ Army National Guards are extended by 4 months. And you know how they learned about this fact? They heard it from their family, and many of them didn't even believe it.

"I spoke to my son this morning and he said, 'Mom, we don't know nothing. These are just rumors. I'm coming home in March,' " said Rosa Rosado, 42, of Newark, whose son Joseph Rosado, 24, is serving in Iraq. "Just to think, he has to go four more months and put his life on the line, and they are not even letting him know."

Instead of coming home in March or April, members of the 117th Reconnaissance Surveillance Target Acquisition unit and the 250th Brigade Support Battalion will now be coming home in July or August after their tours were extended by 125 days.

The extension is part of efforts by President Bush to send about 21,500 more troops into Iraq to help control the ever-increasing sectarian violence.

Can't believe it. If I were the son I probably woouldn't believe my mom, but, hey, it's really happening. What the hell is that having their family to deliver the decision made by the commander-in-chief?

Ford on other presidents

I think it's interesting.

The best president of his lifetime, Ford said, was a more moderate Republican: Dwight D. Eisenhower.

Harry Truman "would get very high marks" for his handling of foreign crises, Ford said. He also praised Richard Nixon as a foreign policy master, despite the Watergate scandal that drove him from office.

Ford considered John F. Kennedy overrated and Bill Clinton average. He admired George H.W. Bush's handling of the Persian Gulf War and had mixed opinions of Carter, who defeated Ford in 1976.

In 1981, Ford said: "I think Jimmy Carter would be very close to Warren G. Harding. I feel very strongly that Jimmy Carter was a disaster, particularly domestically and economically. I have said more than once that he was certainly the poorest president in my lifetime."

But two years later, he praised Carter's performance on the Panama Canal treaty, China and the Middle East. And in 1998, he said Carter "will be looked on as a better president than some comments we hear today."

Ford said Reagan, who challenged him unsuccessfully for the GOP nomination in 1976, was "a great spokesman for attractive political objectives" such as a balanced budget and defeating communism, "but when it came to implementation, his record never matched his words."

Reagan was "probably the least well-informed on the details of running the government of any president I knew," Ford said. In a separate interview, he said Reagan "was just a poor manager, and you can't be president and do a good job unless you manage."

Quite candid talks.

Denver to host 2008 Democratic Convention

While I'm booking my trip to Denver, it is announced that it will host the Democratic Convention.

Democrats selected Denver to host their 2008 presidential convention, turning down New York in favor of a problematic but enthusiastic bid from a city in the increasingly Democratic Rocky Mountain West.

"There is no question that the West is important to the future of the Democratic Party," Democratic Chairman Howard Dean said in a statement Thursday. "The recent Democratic gains in the West exemplify the principle that when we show up and ask for people's votes and talk about what we stand for, we can win in any part of the country."

While I see a Princetonian in news....

After Ehrlich, Frist and Rumsfeld's leaving, I thought next time I should see a Princetonian with more progressive view, but just minutes ago, I saw this

Meg Whitman, the president and CEO of eBay is one of Romney's biggest supporters.......The eBay woman is obviously a religious right loving Republican (and she deserves what's coming to her company now as a result of her embrace of such extremist, bigoted politics).

I'm not 100% sure about every discription John Aravosis put on her, but to be a regional chairs of finance committee of someone recently repeatedly (attempt to) weaken the principle of equal protection under law seems saying all already. BTW, how do I know she's a Princetonian? We even have a residential College named after her. Thank God it's still under construction, or I might feel bad about (especially gay) guys living there. BTW it seems AMERICAblog is encouraging people to boycott eBay. I might think about it if there is any real chance for me to have any bussiness with it. So far I have never had anything to do with them.

Wal-Mart a good corporate citizen?

That's really not what I've known for years, but they really claim they are, and made an ad out of it.

"It all began with a big dream in a small town, Sam Walton's dream," a narrator says as one ad starts with a black-and-white photo of Sam Walton and a grainy shot of Walton's first five-and-dime store in what is now the chain's headquarters town of Bentonville, Ark.

"Sam's dream. Your neighborhood Wal-Mart," the ad ends.

Both ads recite key points Wal-Mart has been making to reporters for months about its record, but the ads now take the arguments straight to the public.

The nation's largest private employer says it creates tens of thousands of jobs a year, offers employee health plans for as little as $23 a month, saves "the average working family" more than $2,300 a year through its low prices and is a major contributor to local charities with donations last year totaling more than $245 million.

In a news release about the ads, Wal-Mart said a survey of its employees nationwide last summer found 88 percent believe the company is a good corporate citizen and 81 percent would recommend a Wal-Mart job to a friend.

My first order approximation of how good a corporate citizen is is HRC's rating, which gave Wal-Mart 65 in 2006. I don't see it as too impressive, especially compared with othter companies in the same industry.

Recycling e-waste

Federal government researchers estimate 75 percent of all computers ever sold in the United States are still sitting somewhere, waiting to be thrown out.

Gee....75%? I know there is one laptop sitting in my room doing nothing. The last time I turned it on (or the last time it could be turned on) was almost two years ago. I keep it there for two reasons, first, in principle the parts can be taken out for other use; second, it's small and doesn't bother me. So in case I'd like to dispose it, what should I do?

Under pressure from environmental groups, Dell, Apple and Hewlett-Packard have recently set up computer recycling programs that allow users to send their old computers and components back to the manufacturer to be recycled for free or a small fee. Many municipal and county governments also have added monthly or annual e-waste collection days to their recycling programs.

Since my unusable laptop isn't any of those brands, I guess I have to rely on my municipality (Princeton Township), or let it go into landfill, but

......the dangerous lead, mercury and other toxic materials inside them -- are ..... ending up in landfills.

So

In some states, including California, consumers pay a few dollars every time they buy a computer to fund a state recycling program. Other states have passed legislation requiring electronics manufacturers to cover some of the cost of recycling.

New Jersey lawmakers debated similar legislation last year that would require computer manufacturers to assume some of the cost of recycling. A separate proposal would have required consumers buying new televisions to pay a small fee to help cover the cost of recycling old sets. But the legislation has not made it to a vote.

I'm for such kind of measure. I guess that solves quite some problems to lots of people. BTW, what's the major con reasons for that? When NJ legislature doesn't take a vote, that usually means the leaders (Senate President and Asembly Speaker) think there are not enough of votes to pass the bill, and I guess that means quite some people are against paying a few dollars to ensure your ability to dispose your computers without problems. I just wonder why.

Pat Robertson: there will be another terrorist attack

"I'm not necessarily saying it's going to be nuclear," he said during his news-and-talk television show "The 700 Club" on the Christian Broadcasting Network. "The Lord didn't say nuclear. But I do believe it will be something like that."

Robertson said God told him during a recent prayer retreat that major cities and possibly millions of people will be affected by the attack, which should take place sometime after September.

First of all, didn't he just say God told him Bush administration isn't capable enough to stop another terrorist attack? And, what does that mean God told him? Is it like God told George W. Bush to invade Iraq? I guess this kind of Gods words don't matter that much

In 2005, Robertson predicted that Bush would have victory after victory in his second term. He said Social Security reform proposals would be approved and Bush would nominate conservative judges to federal courts.

Lawmakers confirmed Bush's 2005 nominations of John Roberts and Samuel Alito to the Supreme Court. But the president's Social Security initiative was stalled.

"I have a relatively good track record," he said. "Sometimes I miss."

In May, Robertson said God told him that storms and possibly a tsunami were to crash into America's coastline in 2006. Even though the U.S. was not hit with a tsunami, Robertson on Tuesday cited last spring's heavy rains and flooding in New England as partly fulfilling the prediction.

I sort of have an impression that a disaster would come to punish people for gay marriage. The problem is New Hampshire doesn't have any form of gay union. I did feel God told me something once, but that thing was never realized. I'm personally not too much a believer into a talking God.

One more reason to boycott ExxonMobil

I can't boycott ExxonMobil any more, since I haven't fuel my car with their gas since Day 1, and don't plan to do it in the future either, but someone must be able to do something. Please, is it really such a huge problem to find another gas chain? I mean, I know all big oils are evil, but ExxonMobil appears to be the worst among them. It's one thing to emit green house gases, totally another to pay people to mislead the public about the science behind global warming. The church has done enough against science, and we should stop corperations from doing the same.

ExxonMobil Corp. gave $16 million to 43 ideological groups between 1998 and 2005 in a coordinated effort to mislead the public by discrediting the science behind global warming, the Union of Concerned Scientists asserted Wednesday.

The report by the science-based nonprofit advocacy group mirrors similar claims by Britain's leading scientific academy. Last September, The Royal Society wrote the oil company asking it to halt support for groups that "misrepresented the science of climate change."

Mass. gay marriage ban went forward

People generally believed no vote would have been taken, but it did, and got enough to advance into the next round.

The vote Tuesday in the constitutional convention came without debate, immediately after Senate President Robert Travaglini officially opened the joint session. Earlier in the day, Gov-elect Deval Patrick had met with Travaglini and House Speaker Salvatore DiMasi to urge against a vote, calling it a 'question of conscience.' He said the proposed amendment was the first time the amendment process was being used "to consider reinserting discrimination into the constitution.

I don't really know what's going on there. I mean they avoided a vote for so long, so why they suddenly decided to have a vote today? Maybe denying the admendment at the second session will earn more time? Anyone has any inside news?

John Roberts: payment of fed judges is a constitutional crisis

It's not the first time he addresses on this issue, but this time he puts it into his annual report, and his wording is so strong.

Pay for federal judges is so inadequate that it threatens to undermine the judiciary's independence, Chief Justice John Roberts says in a year-end report critical of Congress.

The issue of pay, says Roberts, "has now reached the level of a constitutional crisis."

It is the first time in the two-decade history of year-end reports by Roberts and his predecessor, the late William Rehnquist, that the chief justice's message has focused entirely on a single subject.

And the coming Democratic majority seems fond of the idea of pay increase

Leahy, incoming chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said Roberts "is right that the issue of judicial compensation relations to the issue of the independence of the judiciary." Leahy said the chief justice "has tackled a touchy but timely topic that has been a chronic sticking point between the judicial and legislative branches."

Over the past 16 years, Congress has provided the judiciary occasional cost-of-living adjustments, but Roberts said the absence of salary increases is "grievously unfair."

Isn't that funny, that a Chief Justice nominated by a Republican President and confirmed by a Republican Senate is asking for something, which hasn't been done in 12 years of Republican-held majority, and the new Democratic Senate seems has no problem with?

Happy New Year / December impression report

Happy New Year, everyone. We had 153 impressions in December, becoming the third highest since May. Peaked on 8th (32), when there was no post; second on 5th, with Ads of Think Equal.