Frieda Berryhill Writes: Do You Feel Safe Now?

In light of new information let me repeat:

Sharif Mobley was among 11 al Qaeda suspects arrested in the Yemeni capital in early March, Mobley, 26, worked at the Salem and Hope Creek nuclear reactors in New Jersey and other reactors in the area. If you remember, he grabbed his guards gun and shot him.

The Utilities say he had no access to sensitive areas of the plants.
Now view these videos and consider the credibility of that statement.

If you remember recently I sent a video showing the Guards sleeping on the job at Peach Bottom. We now learned that this is not an isolated incident . but a widespread problem.

Watch:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x2o0Wh8dVZY&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uGNMk37iT_U&NR=1

Surely Mr Mobley could have had free range to enter any area of the plant.

Ahh, but we got that covered!!
For too long we’ve assumed that a nuclear plant is safe as long as its reactor is protected. Sharif Mobley knew better. Now, chances are, so does Al Qaeda.

Charles Faddis, a former officer at the Central Intelligence Agency, is the author of “Willful Neglect: The Dangerous Illusion of Homeland Security.” Charles Faddis Op-Ed Contributor NYTimes
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Alain Pilon cartoon

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Plus, UnPlug Salem sends along a link to a long article on PSE&G's plans for a new nuke



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Jud Bennett Writes: In His Own Words: "The making of a Bearded Marxist" by Chris Coons [And More]

FYI: I just got this copy of the actual Chris Coons (D) (Candidate for US Senate) article... it is some manifesto!

Chris Coons: "The making of a Bearded Marxist"
By Chris Coons

"College is supposed to be a time of change, a time to question our assumption about the world and define our basic values. For me, the transformations of the last few years have been especially acute. I came to Amherst from a fairly sheltered, privileged, and politically conservative background. I campaigned for Reagan in 1980, and spent the summer after freshman year working for Senator Roth (of Kemp-Roth tax-cut fame.) In the fall of 1983, I was a proud founding member of the Amherst College Republicans. In November 1984, I represented the Amherst Democrats in a hotly contested pre-election debate against my former roommates, co-founders and leaders of the Republicans. As the debate progressed it became obvious how unreconcilably different our opinions had become. What caused such a shift in only one year?

I spent the spring of my junior year in Africa on the St. Lawrence Kenya Study Program. Going to Kenya was one of the few real decisions I have made; my friends, family, and professors all advised against it, but I went anyway, My friends now joke that something about Kenya, maybe a strange diet, or the tropical sun, changed my personality; Africa to them seems a catalytic converter that takes in clean-shaven, clear thinking Americans and sends back Bearded Marxists.

The point that others ignore is that I was ready to change. Experiences at Amherst my first two years made me skeptical and uncomfortable with Republicanism, enough so that I wanted to see the Third World for myself to get some perspective on my beliefs. Certainly Kenya provided a needed catalyst; I saw there poverty, and oppression more naked than any in America, and I studied under a bright and eloquent Marxist professor at the University of Nairobi. Nevertheless, it is only too easy to return from Africa glad to be an American and smugly thankful for our wealth and freedom. Instead, Amherst had taught me to question, so in return I questioned Amherst, and America.

When I first arrived at Amherst, I was somewhat of a Republican fanatic. I fit Churchill’s description, namely, that a fanatic is “Someone who can’t change their mind, and won't change the subject.” While other freshman share care packages from home, I was equally generous with my inherited political opinions giving them to anyone who would listen. It was in this manner that I soon met a creature I had never known before—a Democrat, several of them. Some of the “Leftists” that I met early on were terrifyingly persuasive, although I never admitted that. A few became my friends and provided a constant nagging backdrop of doubt, for which I am now grateful.

More importantly, during sophomore year, several professors challenged the basic assumptions about America and the world relations with which I had grown up. Cultural Anthropology inspired a fascination with other peoples, and undermined the accepted value of progress and the cultural superiority of the West. In examining the role of myths in “primitive” cultures, we also studied the myth of equal opportunity in this country, a myth I had never questioned. A course on the Vietnam War painted in gory detail a picture of horrible failures made possible by American hubris and dogmatism. I came to suspect, through these and other courses, that the ideal of America as “a beacon of freedom and justice, providing hope for the world” was not exactly based in reality. So, I went to Africa, hungry for a break from Amherst and eager to gain some broader political insight from the brutally real world. What do other nations think of us? Can private enterprise and democracy solve the problems of developing nations? Is Marxism an evil ideology, leading millions into totalitarian slavery? These were some of the questions in the back of my mind as I left for Kenya.

What I learned in Africa unsettled me. I saw the deprivation and oppression of the poor and the politically disfavored in a way not possible in the U.S. In Kenya, my position was not at stake; I was not directly benefiting if the underprivileged had little hope of advancement. I lived with the struggling African family for a month and came to know the hardships that they face. What surprised me was the attitude of the elite; I became friends with a very wealthy businessman and his family and heard them reiterate the same beliefs held by many Americans; the poor are poor because they are lazy, slovenly, uneducated. “Kenya is a land of opportunity,” they said, “those who work receive their just reward.” I knew this was not true in the case of many black Kenyans; this story merely served to justify the position of many who had done well only by working for the British colonialists. I realize that Kenya and America are very different, but experiences like this warned me that my own favorite beliefs in the miracles of free enterprise and the boundless opportunity to be had in America might be largely untrue.

When I returned last summer, I traveled all over the East Coast and saw in many ways a different America. Upon arriving at Amherst this fall, I felt like a freshman at an unfamiliar school all over again. Many of the questions raised by my experiences of the last year remained unanswered. I have spent my senior year reexamining my ideas and have returned to loving America, but in the way of one who has realized its faults and failures and still believes in its promise. The greatest value of Amherst for me, then, has been the role it played in allowing me to question, and to think. I had to see the slums of Nairobi before the slums of New York meant anything at all, but with out the experiences of Amherst, I never would have seen either."

[Jud, I sure wish the GOP would pay attention to the egregious affronts New Castle Countians suffer resulting from Chris Coons' land use department]
Meanwhile, more from the National Republican Senatorial Committee:

“Chris Coons squandered the largest budget surplus in New Castle County history and then left county taxpayers with the bill. In fact, after promising not to raise taxes, Coons was responsible for the largest property tax hike New Castle County residents had ever seen,” - State Party Chair, Tom Ross

As Democrat Chris Coons (D-DE) formally declares his candidacy for the U.S. Senate today, Delaware voters are reminded of Coons’ tax-and-spend record that nearly bankrupted New Castle County.

As County Executive , Coons raised property taxes three times and supported a litany of other taxes on families and businesses – from a new hotel tax to a tax on 911 emergency calls. In just one term as County Executive, Coons’ tax-and-spend agenda took the county’s financial health from what Coons called “fundamentally sound” in 2005 to the verge of bankruptcy. As Coons himself admitted, the county was “months from being out of money – unable to operate” under his watch in 2009.

“Through massive taxes and spending, Chris Coons nearly led the families of New Castle County off a financial cliff. Now Coons wants to bring his tax-and-spend record to Washington so he can rubberstamp the Democrats’ failed economic agenda. Delaware families deserve an independent-minded Senator who will fight for checks and balances in Washington , and there’s no doubt that voters will hold Coons accountable for his reckless fiscal record this November,” said National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) spokeswoman Amber Marchand.

Background Information:

Coons Led New Castle County To The Verge Of Bankruptcy:
2009: “‘We’re 18 Months From Being Out Of Money -- Unable To Operate, Not To Use The “B” Word,’ Coons Said, In A Reference To Bankruptcy.” (Jeff Montgomery, “Sobering Challenges Reflected In Speeches,” The [ Wilmington , DE ] News Journal, 1/22/09)

2005: Coons Called The County’s Economic Health “Fundamentally Sound.” (Angie Basiouny, “NCCo Exec Proposes Reining In Spending,” The [ Wilmington , DE ] News Journal, 3/30/05)

On The Campaign Trail, Coons Promised Not To Raise The Property Tax: Coons Claimed His Top Priority Would Be To Continue Balancing The Budget Without Increasing Property Taxes. (Cris Barrish, “Coons Sinks Freebery, Says Honor To Return,” The [ Wilmington , DE ] News Journal, 9/12/04)

While Campaigning For County Executive In 2004, Coons Promised Not To Raise Property Taxes. (Charlotte Hale, “New Executive Faces Financial Challenges,” The [ Wilmington , DE ] News Journal, 10/23/04)

Coons Raised Property Taxes Three Times As County Executive . (Angie Basiouny, “Coons’ 2010 Proposal Hits Hard -- And Broad,” The [ Wilmington , DE ] News Journal, 3/18/09; Chris Coons, Op-Ed, “‘Responsible’ NCCo Budget Calls For Shared Sacrifice,” The [ Wilmington , DE ] News Journal, 5/23/09; Alison Kepner, “Residents Say Tax Hike Small, But Express Fears For Future,” The [ Wilmington , DE ] News Journal, 5/16/06)

Coons Proposed Many Other Taxes:

Coons Lobbied The State Legislature For A 911 Tax, A Hotel Tax And A Paramedic Tax. (Angie Basiouny, “Tax Hike, Deep Cuts In Store For NCCo,” The [Wilmington, DE] News Journal, 3/17/07; Ron Williams, “There’s More Than One Tax Hike Proposed For NCCo,” The [Wilmington, DE] News Journal, 3/21/07; Ron Williams, Op-Ed, “Using Telephone Bills To Raise Tax Income Is Sneaky,” The [Wilmington, DE] News Journal, 4/15/07; Ron Williams, “There’s More Than One Tax Hike Proposed For NCCo,” The [Wilmington, DE] News Journal, 3/21/07)

Coons Proposed Raising The Sewer Tax Almost Every Year. (Adam Taylor, “Coons Proposes Layoffs,” The [Wilmington, DE] News Journal, 3/17/10; Angie Basiouny, “Coons’ 2010 Proposal Hits Hard -- And Broad,” The [Wilmington, DE] News Journal, 3/18/09; Angie Basiouny, “Coons To Propose Sewer Rate Increase,” The [Wilmington, DE] News Journal, 3/20/08; “Around Delaware,” The [Wilmington, DE] News Journal, 3/22/06; Angie Basiouny, “NCCo Exec Proposes Reining In Spending,” The [Wilmington, DE] News Journal, 3/30/05)

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Tom Carper Votes Against TBTF - Big Letdown For Ted Kaufman's SAFE ACT

I wonder what job Chris Dodd is eyeing for 2011. Will Tester get his bill through that completely prohibits members of Congress from taking a lobbyist job after leaving public service? That goes double for Tom Carper who is rumored to be retiring at the end of his term.

(HuffPo) ~ Senate Votes For Wall Street; Megabanks To Remain Behemoths

A move to break up major Wall Street banks failed Thursday night by a vote of 61 to 33. Three Republicans, Richard Shelby of Alabama, Tom Coburn of Oklahoma and John Ensign of Nevada, voted with 30 Democrats, including Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada, in support of the provision. The author of the pending overall financial reform bill in the Senate, Banking Committee Chairman Christopher Dodd, voted against it. (See the full roll call.)

Too bad the creepy Tom Carper doesn't want to keep Americans SAFE.


(h/t Rob Tornoe)


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Decision Just In: "The FCC Will Be Able To Regulate Boadband And Protect Internet Freedom"

(FDL) from David Dayen's ~ The Roundup

• That broadband reclassification did happen today. Great news. This isn’t over, but we all really dodged a bullet with this. The FCC will be able to regulate broadband and protect Internet freedom.

Plus, (Slate) Sascha Meinrath and James Losey report ~ Denial of Service - Don't believe the telecoms. Broadband access in the United States is even worse than you think.

And from the inbox ~ SavetheInternet.com

Whew! That was a close call.
On Monday, the Washington Post reported that FCC Chairman Genachowski was about to cave to pressure from AT&T and Comcast lobbyists and abandon his pledge to protect Net Neutrality.

We've been blown away by the outcry from you and other SavetheInternet.com supporters. You kept the phones ringing off the hook in the FCC chairman's office for days; you called the White House to complain; and nearly 250,000 of you signed your names to our letter demanding that the FCC reclaim its authority under the law and keep corporate gatekeepers from dictating what information we can access online.

Our amazing grassroots push was noticed by the Wall Street Journal, the Associated Press, Reuters and the Washington Post — and you were heard loud and clear at the FCC.

Today, Chairman Julius Genachowski blinked. He backed away from the cliff and announced he was moving to implement broadband policies that will preserve the open Internet and promote universal access.

This decision was an epic loss for AT&T and Comcast and their multi-million dollar lobbyists — but a solid victory for the rest of us, including the more than 1.9 million Americans who've demanded that Washington take a stand for Net Neutrality.

This is great news, and thanks to you, we can call today a win. But we can't rest until the rules are finalized, the ink is dry, and the FCC has done everything to protect Internet users. Chairman Genachowski just announced that the FCC will take the summer to weigh a Title II option that will support Net Neutrality rules.

While Comcast and AT&T may be licking their wounds today, tomorrow they'll be unleashing their lobbyists and smear merchants in an effort to strangle Net Neutrality.

Our next steps are crucial. As this issue comes to a head at the FCC over the next few months, we'll need to keep up public pressure on the FCC, lobby members of Congress and continue to debunk the industry lies about Net Neutrality and reclassification. And we'll be counting on you to step up again if Chairman Genachowski starts to waffle on protecting the open Internet.

Those are the stakes. Now we're in for the long haul. Can you take a couple minutes and do three things for Net Neutrality?
1. Donate $10 to the Free Press Action Fund;
2. Check out our new timeline illustrating the history of this fight;
3. Help us reach 2 million for Net Neutrality — we're so close and just a few more signatures from your friends could push us over the top.

In an age when corporations can spend limitless sums to influence policy and sway election outcomes, the public must stand together in defense of the only open communications platform we have left.

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State House GOPers Dig In Their Heels On SB 234 - Universal Recycling Bill - DialogueDel Has It All On Twitter

A few choice tweets from Leg Hall today
http://twitter.com/DialogueDel ~

- Cathcart says this wasn't a ploy to get something, it was to get extra time until Tuesday to look at the bill, prepare amendments.

- Cathcart: "There are plenty of sticking points on the bill. There is going to be a healthy debate on the bill on Tuesday."

- Cathcart: "If this continues for the rest of the session it's going to be the same end of session that it was last year."

- Cathcart asked if Markell encourages bipartisanship, "Absolutely not."

- As Cathcart exits, Selander has entered the press room with a phone to put Markell on speakerphone. He's up next.

- Markell: "This thing has been hanging out there for months."
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- Markell when asked if there was any harm in waiting one day: "We're elected to get these things done."

- Markell says Cathcart didn't tell him what questions they had that were unanswered.

- Markell on Cathcart's comment that no bipartisanship: "We've had support from both parties on a number of bills."

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DEMs GET BACKBONE! REID BACKS TBTF AND FED AUDIT AMENDMENTS!

Update III: *SIGH* (FDL) Jane Hamsher writes ~ Bernie Sanders Helps Obama Shield Fed and TBTF Banks From Scrutiny
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Update II: MinistryOfTruth ~ Sen. Sanders reads the RIOT ACT to the Fed on the Senate Floor (Update: WH offers watered down alt.) - Watch Senator Bernie Sanders as he spoke today for almost a half and hour in one of the greatest speeches the Senate has ever seen.

Update: I'm walking the Reid story back some...Dylan Ratigan's guest just called it pure, political, empty, grandstanding because Reid doesn't have the votes...oh well.....Maybe not..Hold the presses ~

MAJOR UPDATE FROM TPM: It appears Sanders has won!
Dodd and Sanders have modified the amendment a bit but it still will allow the GAO to audit the FED and do what Sanders and so many want. With Dodd now onboard with Reid it looks verrry likely this one will pass very shortly. If it does its a big win for us all!

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/...
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(DKos) pronin2 writes ~ Big News: Reid Backs Brown and Sanders, Feingold Threatens Fillibuster!

This is pretty big. Maj Leader Reid has decided to back the key Brown amendment and the Sanders amendment! He told reporters he plans to make sure both have floor votes and his vote. As the article notes this is big for those wanting real reforms in this bill. Of note Sen Bennet of CO will now vote for the Sanders audit amendment- he was opposed previously and Sen Franken is on board now with the Brown big banks amendment!

Greg Sargent claims liberals are gaining momentum as the WhiteHouse grows nervous. This isn’t the public option here. The public is in a very populist anti bank mood and anything to break them up would be hailed by most Americans. He notes Feingold and Franken are now signed onto the Brown amendment and numbers keep growing.

See here: http://voices.washingtonpost.com/...

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Delaware General Obligation Bond Refinancing Nets $10.29 Million Cash Savings

(presser)

Responsible Financial Practices Result in $10.29m Savings for State
Strong Credit Rating Leads to Low Interest Rates

Dover – On Tuesday evening, the State of Delaware completed the refinancing of general obligation bonds to achieve a cash savings totaling $10.29 million, most of which will occur in Fiscal Year 2012. This comes on the heels of the reaffirmation of Delaware’s triple-a credit rating by all three national bond rating agencies.

“Delaware’s responsible financial and economic policies have been recognized once more, resulting in real savings for our taxpayers,” said Governor Jack Markell. “Because Delawareans come together again and again to make clear we are focused on our long-term financial health, bond buyers are willing to invest in us at a rate that will save our state millions.”

In total, $152.15 million in bonds were refinanced by the state. The sale included both retail and institutional investors and was led by Morgan Stanley. The banking syndicate also included J. P. Morgan, Stone & Youngberg, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Stifel Nicolaus and Edward Jones.

“In this economic environment, these savings are considerable and reflect Delaware’s long-standing structural safeguards and our conservative approach to fiscal issues,” said Secretary of Finance Tom Cook. “We will continue to search for and examine every opportunity to save taxpayers money.”

Delaware has maintained a triple-a credit rating since April 2000, and is one of only eight states currently rated at the highest level. Standard & Poor's Ratings Services sited Delaware’s comparatively diversified economy, strong financial management practices, strong general fund reserves and liquidity, moderate overall debt burden with strong debt management policies in place; and well-funded pension system.

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Lieberman Shreds Constitution - Help Stop The "Terrorist Expatriation Act" In Its Tracks

From the inbox ~

The Constitution isn't optional. But if Senator Lieberman (I-CT) gets his way, the government will be able to revoke your citizenship and strip you of all of your Constitutionally guaranteed rights simply by designating you an enemy combatant. No judge and no jury needed, government bureaucrats would have final say on whether you deserve to be a citizen.

ACT NOW: Tell your Senators to oppose Sen. Lieberman's dangerous and un-American attack on the Constitution, the so-called "Terrorist Expatriation Act."

Senator Lieberman must have failed his 4th Grade government class. That's the only way he could think a law giving the Executive Branch the power to strip citizens of their rights had any place in America. As the rest of us know, our nation's founders composed the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights with a radical idea: the rule of law.

Rather than have a monarch serve as the sole source of power and authority, the United States would be a nation of laws designed to protect the "inalienable rights" of our citizens. Not only would those laws protect us from each other, but most importantly, they would protect us from our own government. The whole point of the Constitution is to prevent the very thing Joe Lieberman is proposing.

Write your Senators to oppose Sen. Lieberman's bill NOW. Then ask your friends and family to do the same - the American Constitution and our system of checks and balances must be defended from this radical attack.

Make no mistake, Senator Lieberman is not alone in his effort to shred the Constitution. Sen. John McCain, (R-AZ) has been quite vocal in his desire to deny Americans their rights "if they're designated an enemy combatant, yes." Even Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) supports Sen. Lieberman's idea: "That sounds like something I'd support, but I'd have to look at the legislation."

American citizens cannot allow this bill to pass, and we must all act to defend OUR rights and OUR Constitution from Sen. Lieberman's dangerous and un-American assault.
Thanks,Tom, Ryan & the New Security Action Team

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Peter Jesson Writes: Sestak Sees The Whites Of Specter's Eyes

SPECTER IN A NUTSHELL

JOE SESTAK IS RUNNING A BRILLIANT CAMPAIGN.

SPECTER, ON THE OTHER HAND, IS RUNNING SCARED

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Rove, Gillespie Attempt To Replicate DEMs' Success With New Fundraising/Outreach Organizations But They May Be Missing The Point

Update: The Politico piece talks about GOP operatives' sapping money from Michael Steele's RNC but CQ Politics reveals that Eric Cantor's much-heralded group has hit the skids. Is this all part of the Rovian plot (snark alert) or is it as Cantor suggests - defeated "because of the intense negative attention it received from the Democratic campaign committees and other groups after its introduction."
(CQ Politics) Jackie Kucinich, CQ-Roll Call reports ~ Cantor’s Policy Group Has Faded Away
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Politico is ramping up the drama with a little Rovian rhetoric this morning. I don't doubt that these GOPers will collect plenty of money but they'll never control the media and message as long as progressives stay on point. The truth has set us free - so far so good.

politico - Rove, GOP secretly plot vast network to reclaim power. http://bit.ly/czsIpu

The Republican Party’s best-connected political operatives have quietly built a massive fundraising, organizing and advertising machine based on the model assembled by Democrats early in the decade, and with the same ambitious goal — to recapture Congress and the White House.

...While separate, the five entities are so closely related that three share an 11th-floor office near the White House.

American Crossroads
American Action Network
American Action Forum
Resurgent Republic
Republican State Leadership
Committee

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Huffington Post Lists "7 Secrets BP Doesn't Want You To Know"

(HuffPo) Gazelle Emami ~ BP Oil Spill: 7 Secrets BP Doesn't Want You To Know

#7 Human Rights/Environmental Violations

In 2006, BP made a multimillion pound payout to Colombian farmers after being
accused of benefiting from a regime of terror carried out by the Colombian government paramilitaries to protect their 450-mile pipeline. 1,000 farmers and their family members, working on 52 farms, were affected by the development and said they were pushed into surrounding towns, forced into lives of destitution due to the development.BP's recent involvement in the Canadian tar sand development has also stirred controversy for both its human rights and environmental violations.

Eriel Tchekwie Deranger, from Fort Chipewyan, which is a center of the tar sand development, told the Guardian: "It is destroying the ancient boreal forest, spreading open-pit mining across our territories, contaminating our food and water with toxins, disrupting local wildlife and threatening our way of life."

Many fear the development is risking the lives of locals, increasing the likelihood of cancer. Furthermore, the project would release enough carbon in total to tip the world into unstoppable climate change. A Guardian analysis the day after the Gulf oil spill details how BP shareholders turned a blind eye to the myriad problems with BP's Canadian tar sand development in a shareholders meeting on April 15, which was a prime opportunity for them to demand transparency. Instead, they chose ignorance, allowing BP to carry on with its actions without any accountability.

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Frieda Berryhill Writes: Nuclear Power: The Bottomless Pit

License Renewals
To extend the life of these old plants for another 20 years, are proceeding swiftly. None have been refused so far. (regardless of generic problems ala Salem )
http://www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/licensing/renewal/applications.html

The bottomless pit
U.S. DOE says $13 bln needed in nuclear loan help
Wed Apr 28, 2010 5:03pm EDTWASHINGTON , April 28 (Reuters) - U.S. Energy SecretarySteven Chu said on Wednesday that the Energy Department wouldneed an additional $13 billion in authority from Congress toprovide loan guarantees for building three new nuclear plants. The department in February awarded $8.3 billion in loanguarantees to help build the first
U.S. nuclear power plant innearly three decades.Well, we know what happen the last time the nuclear Industry went in a building dreamTaxpayers and ratepayers were left footing the bill -- about $300 billion in today's dollars -- for abandoned plants, cost overruns for completed plants, and stranded investments that were higher than the wholesale market price for power. No energy company has ordered a new plant since 1978, and all plants ordered after 1973 were canceled http://clonemaster.homestead.com/files/cancel.htm

In the meantime
Germany:
120,000 Germans protest against nuclear
Hamburg, Germany, April 26 (UPI) They formed a 75- mile human chain to protest the Government’s plan to extend the lifetime of the country’s nuclear power reactors.
The peaceful demonstrators Saturday linked arms in a chain that stretched from the northern towns of Brunsbuettel through Hamburg to Kruemmel, the location of two nuclear power plants.
http://www.upi.com/Science_News/Resource-Wars/2010/04/26/120000-Germans-protest-against-nuclear/UPI-92211272310270

France:
Stop-EPR claimed that a total of over 60,000 people attended the rallies.[2] The news outlet Evening Echo reported that it was a way to get the issue in the eye of candidates in the April-May two-round presidential elections of 2007. The largest crowd was in Rennes, close to Flamanville in Normandy , where preliminary construction on the EPR is underway.[2] Organisers claimed the number of protesters in Rennes was 30,000 to 40,000. Police estimated the crowd at 10,000.[4]………(many other towns listed).

"If sunbeams were weapons of war, we would have had solar energy centuries ago"

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ProPublica Exposes Enviro-Group As Just Another Astroturf Hoax - So Why Did The Gulf of Mexico Foundation Get Front-Paged At The New York Times?

Green Delaware's Alan Muller catches these kinds of hypocrisies locally all the time...
(DKos) Meteor Blades ~ Spill's Deepening Ills for the Gulf Economy - The worst fears of an "oilpocalypse" may yet be avoided, according to The New York Times. But the folks over at ProPublica took a look at one of the groups quoted in that Times story [Gulf of Mexico Foundation] and found it wanting:

At least half of the 19 members of the group’s board of directors have direct ties to the offshore drilling industry. One of them is currently an executive at Transocean, the company that owns the Deepwater Horizon rig that exploded last month, causing millions of gallons of oil to spill into the Gulf of Mexico.

Seven other board members are currently employed at oil companies, or at companies that provide products and services "primarily" to the offshore oil and gas industry. Those companies include Shell, Conoco Phillips, LLOG Exploration Company, Devon Energy, Anadarko Petroleum Company and Oceaneering International.

GAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! - The Gulf of Mexico Foundation‘s website says it was “founded in 1990 by citizens concerned with the health and productivity of the Gulf of Mexico.”

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No Precedent For Mantra: "Private Management, Mayoral Control, And Increased Accountability For Teachers Will Make Scools Better"?

(DKos) Mister S ~ "What happened to the Democratic Agenda on Education?"

President Obama, along with Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, along with many Democratic local and state legislators and executive officials, want to believe that they are providing the means and resources so that we can finally reform a public school system that has been failing our children almost as quickly as it educates them. As a Liberal, a Democrat and an educator, I feel like I'm reading a narrative that clings to a fervent belief in data and logic without having any respect for either.

These Democrats say that we need to close the achievement gap between White/Asian and other ethnic groups and between poor and middle-/upper-class students, and public schools are not doing it quickly enough, so it is time to reform. Never mind that past reform efforts (specifically No Child Left Behind) showed no
improvement in closing the gap. Never mind that 93 years ago, African Americans in Louisiana had a high school graduation rate of 0 (not zero percent, but actually none, as there were no high schools for African Americans in the state). Never mind that the drop-out rate has steadily declined nationally since 1960. Never mind that viewed historically, our graduation and literacy rates have never been higher.

These Democrats say that private management, mayoral control, and increased accountability for teachers (such as tying test scores to teacher pay) will make our schools better. I wonder what makes non-elected non-educators more able to run our schools rather than educated teachers and duly elected school boards. It certainly isn't past history.

Plus, did you know Diane Ravitch has a blog, Bridging Differences?

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Pew Poll Offers Some Perspective: "Socialism" Not So Negative, "Capitalism" Not So Positive

(DKos) DemFromCT ~

Remember that Pew poll Kos covered yesterday (Libertarians viewed more favorably by Democrats than Republicans)? Well, don't miss progressive (68/23) polling more positive than capitalism (52/37)and civil rights (87/10) trump states' rights (77/15). And "socialism"? The title of the
Pew post is "Socialism" Not So Negative, "Capitalism" Not So Positive

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Will America Ever See The Day When Corporate Money Can't Buy Lax Oversight?

(FDL) Seymour Friendly ~ the real story here – how did two hundred-billion-dollar-plus corporations (BP and Transoceanic), with massive engineering resources available, working within a supposed Federal regulatory environment, produce a spectacular high-tech failure and ecological disaster and the only response that the Federal government and BP have together is an insufficient amount of boom breaking down under moderate wave action at the coastline, and a rusty four-story steel box intended to sit under a mile of water over a high-tech well with a 450,000 kilogram blowout preventer that never activated?

Don't forget the massive application of toxic chemical dispersants...

More from flambeau ~ Barack Obama Top Cash Recipient of BP Oil in 2008
and a comment rescue ~

BP’s payment to Obama and the Democrats might have bought something else.

The Washington Post is reporting that the Obama administration failed to carry out environmental impact studies on the BP oil rig in question. It got a waiver from the Obama administration, as the WaOp’s Juliet Eilperin reports in “U.S. exemptd BP’s
Gulf of Mexico Drilling From Evinronmental Impact Study”:

The Interior Department exempted BP’s calamitous Gulf of Mexico drilling operation from a detailed environmental impact analysis last year, according to government documents, after three reviews of the area concluded that a massive oil spill was unlikely.

The decision by the department’s Minerals Management Service (MMS) to give BP’s lease at Deepwater Horizon a “categorical exclusion” from the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) on April 6, 2009 — and BP’s lobbying efforts just 11 days before the explosion to expand those exemptions — show that neither federal regulators nor the company anticipated an accident of the scale of the one unfolding in the gulf.

…”They never did an analysis that took into account what turns out to be the very real possibility of a serious spill,” said Holly Doremus, a law professor at the University of California at Berkeley who has reviewed the documents.

So, under the Obama administration, there was an epic fail that permitted this disaster to happen. Another example of money talks, Obama walks.

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Wall Street's Mighty Struggle For The Status Quo Has Some Democrats 'On The Ropes'

Update: mcjoan thinks DEM obstruction of finance reform "is a little baffling from a political point of view" ~
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(The Hill) Alexander Bolton reports ~ Divided Dems fight over Wall St. reform

The biggest quandary Democrats face is how to regulate the $600-trillion-plus derivatives market....“There’s some division in the caucus over that,” said a liberal senator who attended the lunch and supports Lincoln’s proposal. “But some of the New York people and others want banks to be able to continue selling derivatives.”

...An unlikely coalition of liberal Democrats and Republicans have voiced support for Sanders’s proposal, which calls for the Government Accountability Office to audit the Federal Reserve and would force the Fed to disclose online all the recipients of trillions of dollars in taxpayer loans through the agency’s secret “discount window” program.

... Some Democrats worry the revelations about the Fed’s lending practices could give Republicans political ammunition, and they teased Sanders about working with the GOP. “Some people were joshing him. They said, ‘You’ve been in the Senate too long and are going soft by working with the Republicans,’” said a senator who requested anonymity.

Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) warned that Republicans could exploit an audit of the Fed. “I’m really worried the amendment is going to politicize the Fed,” said McCaskill, who noted that setting monetary policy “has not been a political activity.”

Claire should stop taking Rahm's calls...
With a comment rescue ~

HR 4173 includes an emergency option that the Fed can use that gives them access to up to $4 trillion. The Fed created various "discount windows" to loan $2 trillion to banks in the last year. Normally the money the Fed lends out comes from member banks, but in this case the $2 trillion came from the U.S. Treasury and Congress has every right - I dare say an OBLIGATION - to audit this money and to make it public. HR 4173 makes these “discount windows” a permanent part of the Federal Reserve. LOL The Republicans are haggling over a tiny $50 billion permanent bailout fund??????

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Amazon Watch Writes: Indigenous Peoples Vs The Global Drive For Oil

Three of the most inspiring, courageous leaders of the Achuar people arrived safely in San Francisco on Saturday morning, after an epic eight-day journey from their villages deep in the northern Peruvian Amazon.
So much depends on this journey. As you know, the unrelenting drive for oil has reached the deepest regions of the Amazon rainforest – and as we write this note, the Canadian oil company Talisman Energy is beginning the drilling of exploratory wells in the ancestral homeland of the Achuar people.
For decades the Achuar have opposed oil development in their lands – and now, together, we are in Calgary, Canada preparing to confront Talisman Energy at their Annual General Shareholder Meeting.
Please support the Achuar people by sending a message to the CEO of Talisman Energy, John Manzoni: Respect the Achuar people!

The Achuar have won these struggles before. After witnessing the contamination caused by oil in the neighboring Corrientes River, the Achuar have successfully resisted some of the most powerful oil companies on the planet over the last two decades: Arco, Burlington Resources and, later, Occidental Petroleum. Now, they need our help in their struggle against Talisman Energy.

On Wednedsay at the Talisman Annual General Shareholder Meeting, the Achuar leaders will stand before the CEO, the Board of Directors, and Talisman shareholders, telling the company to respect the collective rights of the Achuar people and demanding that Talisman immediately withdraw from their Amazonian homeland. By sending a message to the CEO of Talisman, you will ensure that the Achuar's demands are heard loud and clear by the company.
Thank you for all of your support! Follow developments on our Facebook page during this courageous and important journey of the Achuar leaders.

For the Amazon,
Britton, Gregor and Mitch Peru Campaign Team

Tell Chevron's Lawyers to Stop Denying Justice to the People of Ecuador!

Ever since they first began organizing to demand that Chevron clean up its oil contamination in their rainforest lands, the indigenous and campesino communities in Ecuador's Amazon region have had to combat the company's abusive legal tactics. At times, it appeared that Chevron had exhausted every trick in the book to evade responsibility, but the oil giant is on the attack again.
Chevron's latest target? Acclaimed filmmaker Joe Berlinger, director of the award-winning documentary CRUDE, which unflinchingly examines Chevron's toxic legacy in Ecuador.
Hoping to scour his footage for material useful to their legal maneuvers and public relations strategies, Chevron is dragging Joe Berlinger into court, demanding that he hand over all of the 600+ hours of footage shot during the making of CRUDE.

TELL CHEVRON THAT ITS ABUSIVE TACTICS MUST END!

Joe Berlinger has vowed to "vigorously" resist this legal attack, citing the First Amendment and the recognized legal rights of journalists to protect their sources and materials. Berlinger is facing off with Chevron in federal court in New York this Friday, April 30, and we're standing behind him.
Critics and audiences have hailed CRUDE as balanced and even-handed in its approach to the oil disaster in the Ecuadorian Amazon. But when it comes to Ecuador, the truth is another of Chevron's enemies. From the premiere of CRUDE in theaters last fall to the recent release of the DVD and hundreds of 'house party' screening events, Amazon Watch supporters have helped spread the word about this powerful film that Chevron doesn't want the world to see. And CRUDE has helped educate communities and mobilize critical support for the campaign to hold Chevron accountable.
Beyond getting access to the footage, Chevron's latest move is undoubtedly designed to harass and intimidate journalists and others who dare to uncover the truth about Chevron's responsibility for massive human suffering and environmental devastation in Ecuador's Amazon rainforest.

TELL CHEVRON ENOUGH IS ENOUGH: TAKE ACTION NOW.
For Justice in Ecuador,
Han Shan Amazon Watch's Clean Up Ecuador Campaign

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Americans for Limited Government Supports Amendment To Audit The Fed - To Reveal Extent Of Relationship With Financial Institutions And Foreign Banks

(presser)

ALG Urges Senate to Adopt Sanders Amendment to
Audit the Federal Reserve

May 4th, 2010, Fairfax, VA—Americans for Limited Government President Bill Wilson today demanded that the U.S. Senate adopt an amendment by Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) that would audit the Federal Reserve Board of Governors and regional Reserve Banks, saying "the American people have a right to know, and Congress a duty to know how the nation's central bank operates to ensure that the Federal Reserve has been a responsible steward of the nation's monetary policy."

"The lack of transparency at the Federal Reserve helped to contribute to the financial crisis. If markets had more reliable information regarding the nation's monetary policy, including which firms are dependent on Federal Reserve subsidies, systemic risk within the system could be identified by markets, instead of kept under a shroud of secrecy as under the current system," Wilson explained.

Wilsons said that the Federal Reserve was "one of the principal actors" that caused the financial crisis: "By keeping interest rates too low for too long, the Fed accommodated the inflation of the housing bubble throughout the 1990's and 2000's by pumping easy money into the system."

Wilson cited research by Stanford economist John Taylor who in a recent Wall Street Journal column wrote, "the Fed's target for the federal-funds interest rate was well below what the Taylor rule would call for in 2002-2005. By this measure the interest rate was too low for too long, reducing borrowing costs and accelerating the housing boom. The deviation from the Taylor rule, which had characterized good monetary policy during the previous two decades, was the largest since the turbulent 1970s."

Wilson said that as the capital the Fed provided through the banking system helped to create the housing bubble and "disproportionately contributed the rise of the nation's money supply." In 1990, outstanding mortgage debt held was $3.805 trillion. By the end of 2007, total mortgage holdings had risen to $14.568 trillion, a monumental 282 percent jump of $10.763 trillion in new mortgages. During that same period, according to the True Money Supply index from the Ludwig Von Mises Institute, the money supply rose from about $1.787 trillion at the end of 1990 to about $5.268 trillion by the end of 2007, an 195 percent increase of $3.481 trillion.

In addition, Wilson said the Federal Reserve's role since the crisis began in 2007 is "very unclear."

According to Bloomberg News, the Federal Reserve had committed over $7.76 trillion for the bailout. However, it is unclear who received loans from the Federal Reserve, or who will receive the remainder of the committed funds.

Wilson explained, "Nobody can account for about $2 trillion of loans made by the Fed. The reason is because the Fed has consistently stonewalled the press, Congress, and even courts of law. And because law exempts most of the institution from being audited by the GAO."

Wilson cited that the Government Accounting Office, according to 31 USCA §714(b), cannot audit and exempts from public oversight the following activities of the Federal Reserve: (1) transactions for or with a foreign central bank, government of a foreign country, or nonprivate international financing organization; (2) deliberations, decisions, or actions on monetary policy matters, including discount window operations, reserves of member banks, securities credit, interest on deposits, open market operations; (3) transactions made under the direction of the Federal Open Market Committee; or (4) a part of a discussion or communication among or between members of the Board of Governors and officers and employees of the Federal Reserve System related to items.

According to Bloomberg, "The Federal Reserve so far is refusing to disclose loan recipients or reveal the collateral they are taking in return." The Fed has argued it is actually allowed to withhold "internal" memos as well as commercial and trade secrets information. Bloomberg, on the other hand, has actively filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request, demanding the information.

Thus far, the Fed's Board of Governors has refused to comply with Bloomberg's FOIA requests, despite a court ruling in Bloomberg's favor. The Fed's regional Reserve Banks have argued that they are private institutions beyond the reach of the Freedom of Information Act.

The Southern District Court of New York has ordered that the Federal Reserve Board of Governors comply with Bloomberg News' Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to produce the details of some $2 trillion in emergency loans that were made. This includes who received the $2 trillion of loans, the terms under which they were received, and what collateral was taken by the Reserve branches in exchange for the loans.

The Federal Reserve is appealing this ruling, and has thus far refused to comply.

In answering questions from Congressman Alan Grayson (D-FL) last year, Fed Inspector General Elizabeth Coleman testified she could not account for "$1 trillion-plus that the Fed extended and put on its balance sheet since last September…"

An email to Bloomberg by Coleman's office also revealed that "By law, we are the Office of Inspector General for the Board of Governors only… Consistent with our authority, we cannot conduct a direct audit of Reserve Bank operations."

Wilson concluded, "The American people have a right to know just what has gone wrong with the nation's monetary policy, how it contributed to the financial crisis, and what the true extent of the Fed's relationship with financial institutions, foreign banks, and foreign central banks really is."

Attachments: Sanders Amendment to the Dodd Bill, SA 3738, sponsored by Senator Bernie Sanders, and cosponsored by Senators Russ Feingold, Jim DeMint, Patrick Leahy, John McCain, Ron Wyden, Chuck Grassley, Byron Dorgan, David Vitter, Barbara Boxer, Sam Brownback, James Risch, Roger Wicker, Lindsay Graham, Orrin Hatch, Mike Crapo, Robert Bennett, and Jim Bunning.


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Kaufman's Bi-Partisan 'Fraud Enforcement And Recovery Act' Amendment Seeks To Add Teeth To Anti-Fraud Law And Protect Whistleblowers

(presser)
Kaufman Seeks To Add Anti-Fraud, Whistleblower Protections To Wall Street Reform Bill

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Leading members of the Senate Judiciary Committee, including Senator Ted Kaufman (D-Del.), Tuesday filed an amendment to the Wall Street reform legislation that will increase law enforcement resources to root out and prosecute financial and securities fraud, and will strengthen protections for whistleblowers who help expose financial fraud. In addition to Kaufman, the amendment is sponsored by Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), the Committee’s chairman, and Senators Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Arlen Specter (D-Pa.).

“Through the Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act, Congress has put more cops on the Wall Street beat. But we need to do more,” said Kaufman. “This amendment will help law enforcement efforts by providing prosecutors with tools they need to try the type of fraud that was at the heart of the financial crisis -- and send those who commit such fraud to jail for a long time. It also adds key whistleblower protections for private citizens who dare to speak out against financial fraud.”

“In these difficult economic times, we must make every effort to ensure accountability for the massive wave of fraud on Wall Street and beyond that has so undermined our economy, and we must protect taxpayers from ongoing fraud that could slow our economic recovery,” said Leahy. “This amendment will help to ensure that those responsible for committing fraud in the financial industry are held fully accountable for their actions.”

The amendment will increase sentences for securities fraud and bank fraud. Sentences for these offenders are often shorter than those for other white collar offenders whose crimes result in similar loss amounts, and the amendment will close the gap. The amendment will also promote criminal prosecutions by ensuring that regulators, investigators, and prosecutors coordinate to root out and investigate financial fraud. The amendment also extends the statute of limitations for securities fraud, which is often difficult to identify and complicated to prosecute.

The amendment strengthens whistleblower protections that have been included in other recent legislation and complements those protections already included in the Wall Street reform legislation. Whistleblowers serve an important role in exposing financial fraud. The amendment will ensure that the proper incentives are in place to reward whistleblowers who step forward to report fraud and abuse, often at great risk to their careers.

The Senate is debating critical reforms to head off the Wall Street fraud and abuses that have so severely impacted the nation’s economy and financial institutions. On Tuesday, the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Drugs held a hearing to examine whether financial institutions have a fiduciary duty to their clients, and whether those institutions should be criminally liable for violating that duty.

The amendment will:

• Close the sentencing gap between securities fraud offenders and other white collar offenders
• Direct the Sentencing Commission to review and amend the sentencing guidelines for securities and bank fraud
• Protect criminal investigations by ensuring that regulators, investigators and prosecutors work together to stop financial fraud
• Require regulators to consult with prosecutors to ensure that important regulatory steps do not inadvertently undermine criminal investigations and prosecutions
• Ensure that proper incentives are in place to reward whistleblowers who step forward to report fraud and abuse
• Allow those who move money overseas to evade tax laws to be charged with money laundering, which can result in increased charges and sentences
• Extend the current statute of limitations for criminal prosecution of federal securities fraud offenses from five to six years, the current statute of limitations for tax evasion
  

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Global Water Quality Expert To Speak At UD's Mitchell Hall 7PM May 10th In Newark - “Water Is Life -- New Strategies For A Water Stressed World”

From the inbox ~

Leading global water policy expert to speak at UD May 10, the first in UD's Delaware Environmental Institute (DENIN) Dialogue Series

Sandra Postel, director of the Global Water Policy Project and Freshwater Fellow at the National Geographic Society, will speak at 7 p.m., Monday, May 10, in Mitchell Hall at the University of Delaware in Newark.

Her topic of her free public talk will be “Water is Life -- New Strategies for a Water Stressed World.”

Postel also will meet with UD faculty and students on Tuesday, May 11. Postel lectures, writes and consults on international water issues and is the author of several acclaimed books, including Last Oasis: Facing Water Scarcity, which appears in eight languages and was the basis for a 1997 PBS documentary, and Pillar of Sand: Can the Irrigation Miracle Last?, which has been selected for course use at more than 130 colleges and universities.

Postel has authored well over 100 articles for popular and scholarly publications, including Science, Natural History, Foreign Policy, The American Prospect, Ecological Applications, Scientific American, The New York Times and The Washington Post. From 2000 to 2008, Postel served as visiting senior lecturer at Mount Holyoke College and, later in that term, as director of the college's Center for the Environment. She is a fellow of the California-based Post Carbon Institute and an adviser to American Rivers.

A 1995 Pew Scholar in Conservation and the Environment, Postel has been awarded two honorary doctor of science degrees and, in 2002, was named one of the "Scientific American 50" for her contributions to water policy. Her talk is the first in UD's Delaware Environmental Institute (DENIN) Dialogue Series, which will bring experts to campus to speak and engage University participants and the community at large in discussions about pressing environmental issues.

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(image Trap Pond DE Forum)

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Dick Durbin: Brown-Kaufman Safe Banking Act “Clearly A Game Changer" - Supports Amendment "Although Friends In The Banking Industry Won’t Like It"!!

(FDL) David Dayen reports ~ Durbin Supports The Brown-Kaufman Safe Banking Act; Reid Wants Majority Vote Thresholds

Majority Leader Harry Reid staked out his clear position on amendments to the bill, saying that he would like to see simple majority thresholds for all amendments.

...The Brown-Kaufman Safe Banking Act, which would limit bank size and leverage, did pick up an important supporter today, however. After a colloquy on the Senate floor between Sherrod Brown and Ted Kaufman, Assistant Majority Leader Dick Durbin called the measure “clearly a game changer. I am supporting this amendment, although my friends in the banking industry won’t like it… I commend [Sens. Brown and Kaufman] on their leadership.

In his remarks, Kaufman spoke directly to Republicans, saying that he saw “common cause here on the other side of the aisle,” noting that small businesses and small banks get hurt by the mega-banks. The bill would only scale back Citigroup and Goldman Sachs to the size they were around 2003, before the explosion in derivative trading and the massive conglomeration of the finance sector. “We have to pass laws. Not go back to the regulators who didn’t serve us well. We have to pass laws,” Kaufman said.

...Other major votes to strengthen the bill include the Merkley-Levin amendment to ban proprietary trading, the Cantwell-McCain amendment to reinstate Glass-Steagall, the Reed amendment to make the Consumer Financial Protection Agency independent, and the Sanders amendment to audit the Federal Reserve. Voting on amendments should begin today.

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