There is a reason why Aaron Brown was at the top of my list. He wasn't everyone's favorite. I didn't care. Aaron's practice was highly ethical to the extent is allowed him to work within the venue of CNN.
That level of ethics required and does require no matter the profession a dispassionate approach. The 'competition' are shows like 'The Daily Show' and all the other 'entertainment news' programming. Oddly, that wasn't the clientele of Aaron Brown. He had hardline political viewers. They wanted the facts. They didn't mind the political approach so long as it was reasonably balanced. They wanted the news that was timely whether fashionable or not.
Aaron delivered.
I had the profound pleasure of being a viewer that also found a journalist who recieved messages from the public and took them seriously and compassionately. Aaron was a nice guy besides an excellant practioner. He took his public so seriously, he saw no reason for their injury and with that in mind he had 'A Golden Journalist's Rule.' Every report required two verifible sources.
In know 'airing on the side of caution' is not fashionable, but, in this case; regardless of the reaction of the families; should journalists have held back rather than becoming part of the emotional state of 'the scene' perhaps the ultimate reality could have been buffered. Even buffered for the families actively praying for a miracle.
See, Aaron would have done that. He would have been the "Party Pooper" until all the facts were in. That type of pragmatic journalism is what this country needs. It is leadership quality journalism. It is the perfect practice of the profession most at risk and Aaron's dismissal along with the retirement of NewsNight is testimony to the sorry state of affairs in this country.
I don't know what "Slate" would say about Aaron. I am not seeking to displace him over Mr. Cooper. I am simply saying, I appreciate the 'caution' aired here with "Slate" to put the 'trend' at notice. I find it prudent.
Wednesday, January 11, 2006
360 Degrees of Anderson Cooper
What will he feel next?
By Tom Peyer
Posted Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2006, at 12:05 PM ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANNOUNCER: Shock. Grief. Outrage. Glee.
One year after a devastating tsunami, four months after the fury of Katrina, mere days after a tragedy underground, which emotions will overtake Anderson Cooper next? Tonight, a special investigation on ANDERSON COOPER 360°.
ANDERSON COOPER: And good evening from CNN studios in New York, where we begin with a picture. Take a look. The man you see is 38 years old. A Manhattanite. A citizen, an employee, a friend, a son. His name: Anderson Cooper.
Most nights, he appears live on CNN to show you the devastation, destruction, disaster, sadness, and pain his countrymen endure.
But not tonight.
Tonight, he will explore Anderson Cooper. How one reporter copes while waiting for news, any news at all. A story of hope, and of prayers, ahead on 360.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANDERSON: Welcome back. Our topic is Anderson Cooper, so we have a lot to cover in these two hours. We begin at his workplace.
When Anderson Cooper isn't reporting from the field, he's broadcasting the news from CNN's New York headquarters. I just want to give you a sense of the place. Right outside this studio is a suite of offices. It is air-conditioned, it is fluorescent lit, the floors are covered with waxed linoleum. Downstairs, there's a cafeteria. You can see, in the blue uniforms, those are security guards checking the identity of all the people going in for food. You either have to be an employee or—or—or a guest. You can see it on their faces as they file in: The people here at CNN are desperate for news.
Back in the offices, which have seen so much heartbreak, so much joy, and so much heartbreak yet again, there's an intern. I believe she's—yes, she's printing out e-mails for Jack Cafferty's producer. It is literally happening as we speak. We are seeing things like this, just an outpouring of love and caring for people at this network. And people at this network are helping one another and standing by one another, and—
(VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Excuse me, Anderson, I'm sorry for interrupting. To listen to CNN employees thanking each other and complimenting each other, you know, I got to tell you, there are a lot of people out here who are very upset, and very angry, and very frustrated. And when they hear reporters and interns slap—you know, thanking one another, it just, you know, it kind of cuts them the wrong way right now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Anderson, I get the anger that is out there, and I—I—I understand it. More could be done. In time, there will be investigations and lawsuits and, we hope, healing. But for now, there is anger and there is heartbreak. Some answers to some questions, we pray, when 360 returns.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANDERSON: Frustration at CNN. A dramatic scene. Why did it take so long for the commercial break to end? The segments seem to blend together. At times it's easy to forget what network you're on. At a certain point it feels like all the words have already been spoken: "When we return." "Welcome back." "Stunning development." On the surface, it all seems so mundane. The drama is happening deep underneath. It is hard to imagine a place more exposed to the elements. There—there has been anger, and especially in these last couple hours. There's a lot of finger-pointing going on. There is desperation and there is danger. The waves of sadness have just begun. And what is being done to stop it? What can be done to stop it?
360 hours a day, 360 days a week, the feelings don't let up for Anderson Cooper. We, of course, will bring them to you live.
Tom Peyer is a co-editor of O Holy Cow: The Selected Verses of Phil Rizzuto.
Photograph of Anderson Cooper by Michael Springer/Getty Images.
By Tom Peyer
Posted Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2006, at 12:05 PM ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANNOUNCER: Shock. Grief. Outrage. Glee.
One year after a devastating tsunami, four months after the fury of Katrina, mere days after a tragedy underground, which emotions will overtake Anderson Cooper next? Tonight, a special investigation on ANDERSON COOPER 360°.
ANDERSON COOPER: And good evening from CNN studios in New York, where we begin with a picture. Take a look. The man you see is 38 years old. A Manhattanite. A citizen, an employee, a friend, a son. His name: Anderson Cooper.
Most nights, he appears live on CNN to show you the devastation, destruction, disaster, sadness, and pain his countrymen endure.
But not tonight.
Tonight, he will explore Anderson Cooper. How one reporter copes while waiting for news, any news at all. A story of hope, and of prayers, ahead on 360.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANDERSON: Welcome back. Our topic is Anderson Cooper, so we have a lot to cover in these two hours. We begin at his workplace.
When Anderson Cooper isn't reporting from the field, he's broadcasting the news from CNN's New York headquarters. I just want to give you a sense of the place. Right outside this studio is a suite of offices. It is air-conditioned, it is fluorescent lit, the floors are covered with waxed linoleum. Downstairs, there's a cafeteria. You can see, in the blue uniforms, those are security guards checking the identity of all the people going in for food. You either have to be an employee or—or—or a guest. You can see it on their faces as they file in: The people here at CNN are desperate for news.
Back in the offices, which have seen so much heartbreak, so much joy, and so much heartbreak yet again, there's an intern. I believe she's—yes, she's printing out e-mails for Jack Cafferty's producer. It is literally happening as we speak. We are seeing things like this, just an outpouring of love and caring for people at this network. And people at this network are helping one another and standing by one another, and—
(VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Excuse me, Anderson, I'm sorry for interrupting. To listen to CNN employees thanking each other and complimenting each other, you know, I got to tell you, there are a lot of people out here who are very upset, and very angry, and very frustrated. And when they hear reporters and interns slap—you know, thanking one another, it just, you know, it kind of cuts them the wrong way right now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Anderson, I get the anger that is out there, and I—I—I understand it. More could be done. In time, there will be investigations and lawsuits and, we hope, healing. But for now, there is anger and there is heartbreak. Some answers to some questions, we pray, when 360 returns.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANDERSON: Frustration at CNN. A dramatic scene. Why did it take so long for the commercial break to end? The segments seem to blend together. At times it's easy to forget what network you're on. At a certain point it feels like all the words have already been spoken: "When we return." "Welcome back." "Stunning development." On the surface, it all seems so mundane. The drama is happening deep underneath. It is hard to imagine a place more exposed to the elements. There—there has been anger, and especially in these last couple hours. There's a lot of finger-pointing going on. There is desperation and there is danger. The waves of sadness have just begun. And what is being done to stop it? What can be done to stop it?
360 hours a day, 360 days a week, the feelings don't let up for Anderson Cooper. We, of course, will bring them to you live.
Tom Peyer is a co-editor of O Holy Cow: The Selected Verses of Phil Rizzuto.
Photograph of Anderson Cooper by Michael Springer/Getty Images.
I miss Aaron. I guess not many others do.
1000
Yeah, everything is exclusive at CNN. Whether it is or isn't, it 's exclusive.
There is Frankenstein introducing Junior Achievement AGAIN. Oh, cute. Coffee and brains. No doubt Starbucks is on the horizon.
1001
The Florida Bank Robbery. I heard about it this afternoon on MSNBC while watching the Alito hearings. They had a very unique way with subtitles and news flashes to keep everyone up to date on what else was going on in the world. We heard about it 'blow by blow.'
1008
Mining in Kentucky was due to uncontrolled loose rock.
There has been seismic activity along the Mississippi at the borders of Kentucky, Tennessee and Missouri.
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/recenteqsUS/Maps/US10/32.42.-95.-85.html
1012
Commercials.
1014
The New York Times had an article today:
Endemic Problem of Safety in Coal Mining
The Sago Mine had 202 safety violations last year, a number that included 16 blatant violations that were considered immediate hazards to miners' safety. Like Sago, six other underground mines in West Virginia have 100 to 150 employees, according to federal records. Not one of the six had a similar blatant violation last year, according to federal mine records. Sago has had 14 major roof falls since June. Its injury rate last year was three times the national average.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/10/national/10safety.html?emc=eta1&pagewanted=print
Randy McClure has to wake up and get on with it. The sooner he is awake the better. I am sure sleeping is a better option for him but he is needed 'here' and not 'there.'
1020
The News Secretary
Sam Alito is a liar ! Under oath ! Everyone knows where they were when President Kennedy was assassinated. It's just one of those 'Real World Things.'
Alito says he doesn't remember controversial alumni group
KRON-4
CAPITOL HILL Samuel Alito has been distancing himself from an alumni group known for being against opening Princeton University to women and more minorities.
In a 1985 application for a job in the Reagan Justice Department, Alito listed his membership in the Concerned Alumni of Princeton.
But now, the Supreme Court nominee tells the Senate Judiciary Committee he has "no specific recollection of that organization," and he says he wasn't actively involved in it.
But Senator Patrick Leahy says he "can't believe" Alito would have "proudly" listed himself a member in the group without careful consideration. Alito replied that he'd been upset about the university's expulsion of the ROTC program, an expulsion that was opposed by the alumni group.
Leahy dismissed that, saying the group is known mostly for its opposition to women and minorities.
Republican Senator Orrin Hatch followed up with a softball question, asking Alito if he's against women and minorities attending college.
Alito replied, "Absolutely not."
1023
commercials
1026
Suicide attack at Interior Ministry kills 29
Deadly four-day period also claims lives of 28 American troops in Iraq
Associated Press
BAGHDAD, Iraq - Two suicide bombers wearing police uniforms and holding security passes tried to attack National Police Day celebrations Monday, with police shooting one to death and the other exploding his vest, killing 29 people, authorities said. The U.S. ambassador and Iraq’s interior and defense ministers were in attendance but far from the attacks.
1029
Alan Derschowitz. You'll excuse me, Alan, this isn't about EXCELLANCE. That is university stuff. This is about the way the AMERICAN PEOPLE live within the boundaries of the USA. You know Alan currently we have the US Constitution and Bill of Rights. We also have the Bush Constitution and Patriot Act. Now, evidently we all should be treated to the Dershowitz Constitution.
No, thank you !!!!!!!!!!!!!
1031
Arcata City Council calls for Bush impeachment
By Kimberly Wear / Eureka Times-Standard
ARCATA -- A split City Council passed a resolution demanding the impeachment or resignation of President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney, citing violations of international and constitutional law.
The White House responded that the president “remains focused on the business the American people elected him to conduct.”
The resolution lists a series of allegedly impeachable offenses, including “the crime of misleading the American people and Congress into waging an unnecessary and brutal war in Iraq,” “the criminal failure of the president to respond adequately to the Hurricane Katrina disaster,” “torturing human beings in violation of the Geneva Convention” and “ordering the secret surveillance of American citizens.”
Councilman Dave Meserve and Councilwoman Harmony Groves penned the resolution that passed 3-2 Wednesday, joined by Councilman Paul Pitino, with Mayor Michael Machi and Councilman Mark Wheetley dissenting.
”All elected officials swear to uphold and defend the Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic,” Meserve said. “This obligates us to act when the president violates the Constitution. We hope that other cities will join us in demanding the impeachment of Bush and Cheney.”
White House spokesman Ken Lisaius said Bush understands that there are people who “oppose the president's efforts to win the war on terror.”
”How those opposed to those efforts choose to express that opposition is up to each individual -- in this case a city council,” he said. “This president recognizes he has a responsibility and the constitutional authority to protect our country and that's what he will continue to do.”
The resolution also asks that Congressman Mike Thompson, D-St. Helena, join with others in Congress to introduce articles of impeachment against Bush. That would make him the third president to face the proceeding.
The first was President Andrew Johnson and the second -- more than 100 years later -- was President Bill Clinton. Both were acquitted. President Richard Nixon resigned rather than face impeachment.
Impeachment is a two-tier process beginning with a formal accusation, or the impeachment, being brought by the House of Representatives with a majority vote. Then, there is a trial by the Senate -- a conviction requires a two-thirds vote.
Copies of the Arcata resolution are being sent to Thompson, Sens. Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer and members of the House Judiciary Committee.
Feingold makes pitch for Sanders during Vermont visit
By Daniel Barlow / Rutland Herald
BRATTLEBORO — Congressman Bernard Sanders officially kicked off his campaign for U.S. Senate Saturday, flanked by a who's who of southern Vermont liberals and a popular and politically progressive senator from Wisconsin.
Sanders, who is seeking the seat now held by retiring Sen. Jim Jeffords, I-Vt., was joined at his first public campaign event by Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wis., and Vermont Senate President Pro Tem Peter Welch, a Democrat from Windsor County who is running for Sanders' U.S. House seat.
More than 400 people filled a theater at the town's high school Saturday afternoon to hear speeches by Sanders, Vermont's maverick U.S. House representative, and Feingold, who is a possible presidential candidate in 2008 and a staunch advocate for civil liberties and campaign finance reform.
"This little state will lead America in a profound new direction," Sanders said as he received a standing ovation from the crowd.
Sanders stressed similar ways of life between Vermonters and Wisconsin residents as he introduced Feingold, noting that both are rural states with struggling dairy farms. He also praised him for being the only senator to vote against the USA Patriot Act and the first to call for a timetable to remove troops from Iraq.
Feingold responded by joking that an appropriate newspaper headline for the event would be, "Cheesehead endorses Sanders." He quickly added that Vermont "is my kind of place."
Joining the three men were both of Windham County's senators and several of its state representatives. Sen. Rod Gander of Brattleboro welcomed Feingold to the "bluest town in the bluest county in the bluest state of them all," a reference to the popular color-mapping system that was used to track the outcome of the 2004 presidential election.
Sanders did not mention his two Republican opponents for Jeffords' seat, millionaire Richard Tarrant and Air Force fighter pilot Greg Parke, during the Brattleboro event. Fund-raisers for Sanders followed the campaign event at private residences in Brattleboro and Norwich.
Tarrant has vowed to only accept campaign donations from within Vermont, according to Tim Lennon, his campaign manager. Lennon criticized Sanders for accepting "95 percent of his campaign contributions from out-of-state special interests."
"I think Vermont voters will be asking a lot of questions about why people in California are giving money to the Sanders campaign," he said. Tarrant has held dozens of meetings throughout Vermont as he gears up for the race, he added, and campaigned in Brattleboro last month.
During an hour-long question-and-answer session, Sanders and Feingold were asked about the Iraq War, national energy policy and the effect of lobbying money on elected officials, just days after a disgraced Washington, D.C., lobbyist pleaded guilty in a money laundering scheme that may ensnare several more politicians.
Feingold said he supports a zero tolerance policy on gifts from lobbyists to elected officials and said he hopes to work with Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., on a bill to publicly finance federal campaigns.
Feingold, a member of the Senate's Judiciary Committee, raised the possibility that there are grounds to impeach President Bush for his secret domestic surveillance program, which was conducted without warrants or court oversight. He said he expects the surveillance program to get a full review under Committee Chairman Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa.
If it is found that the program is unlawful, Feingold said that "there should be full accountability. I will not take anything off the table."
While the audience was receptive to Sanders and Feingold, it was not so welcoming to Welch. In his brief opening statements, Welch stressed the need to unite Vermont liberals as several local anti-nuclear activists criticized him for his role in allowing Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant to store its nuclear waste on site.
Peter Cooper, a prominent progressive activist from Brattleboro, said Welch "sold us down the river" on the Vermont Yankee deal last year. And Elizabeth Wood of Dummerston asked the Windsor County senator to refuse campaign donations from Entergy Vermont Nuclear, the parent company of the Vernon plant, as her partner, Eesha Williams, held up a sign reading, "Welch Sold Out."
Welch agreed to refuse donations from the company. Earlier in the event, Welch vowed "to make it right" with Windham County activists and said, "I will meet with you."
Jackie Gould of Brattleboro, one of Sanders' volunteers for the event that day, said electing the congressman to the U.S. Senate would change the tone of the discussion because his voice would no longer be drowned out by 434 others.
"We have to elect Bernie for the U.S. Senate, not just for Vermont but for the whole country," she said.
1034
commercials
1036
Leahy Questioning
Washington Post
Democrat Sen. Patrick Leahy (Vt.) stepped it up a notch, pressing Judge Samuel A. Alito about his views on the current political controversy -- whether the president has the right to exercise executive authority in wiretapping during time of conflict. Alito tried to assure the committee that he felt the president was obligated “to comply with the statutes that are passed.” But the nominee, to Leahy’s frustration, left some room in his answers for judicially exploring whether there were overriding circumstances that the government could defend.
While Sen. Specter led the nominee through Alto’s prepared responses on the hot-button issues, Sen. Leahy pushed tried to push Alito out of his comfort zone by challenging the answers he had spent weeks rehearsing.
Leahy asked Alito to explain his dissent in a third circuit cases that defended the police’s decision to strip search a 10-year-old girl in drug case. Leahy criticized the nominee for siding with law enforcement in his ruling. Alito explained that his ruling was not intended to defend the strip search, but to defend the police’s view that that the warrant allowed it.
In closing, Leahy asked the unsmiling Alito how he could have joined Concerned Alumni of Princeton -- a conservative group know to be opposed to increasing the number of women attending the Ivy League school. Alito said he had no recollection of being a member of an organization that both Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) and former Sen. Bill Bradley condemned. Finding the answer incredulous, Leahy questioned how Alito could forget being a part of an organization he so prominently listed on a 1985 job applications.
Alito said that if he did belong to it, it was because Princeton had thrown the ROTC off campus and spoke ill of the military.
1037
Iran. Russia would like to assist and hence supervise Iran's uranium enrichment program. Iran is refusing. The circumstances are turning to the worst outcome for Iran. The reactor will have to be shut down if they refuse supervision. They are too dangerous. The Russian offer is far more viable than anything the EU is proposing. I think. Putin is willing to participate and be accountable. That is a major commitment to peace. Last I read about the Bird Flu, Russia was thinking about closing it's borders with Turkey. I think they should.
Moscow's proposal to Tehran still stands
MOSCOW. (RIA Novosti commentator Pyotr Goncharov.) Statements by Tehran officials that Russia has made no "concrete" proposals on uranium enrichment are little more than subterfuge, and a rather uncouth at that.
The other day the Russian Embassy in Tehran handed the Iranians an official note confirming that the earlier Russian proposal to Iran to set up a joint Russian-Iranian uranium enrichment venture in Russia remained in effect. It seems that here could be no more concrete wording.
The crux of the Russian proposal is that uranium should be enriched on Russian territory, instead of Iran's, as Tehran insists and the U.S. and EU categorically reject. And today this is perhaps the only possible compromise able to break the vicious circle of the Iranian-EU negotiating process (on the Iranian nuclear program).
Iran is insisting on the right to a full nuclear program on its soil. Moscow is offering a trade-in and aid. But Tehran, in the person of its official Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi, says they have "never received any concrete or detailed proposal from Russia." But then he adds: "We will make close study of any plan or proposal that will officially recognize our right to enrich uranium on Iranian territory."
Now everything falls in place. A "concrete" proposal for Iran seems to be one that recognizes its right to enrich uranium on its soil. In other words, Tehran is taking the negotiating process back to the scenario patently unacceptable to the EU.
There is one fairly important aspect of all "concerns" regarding a nuclear program started from scratch (not only by Iran but any other country). Many states initially developed full nuclear fuel programs exclusively to acquire nuclear weapons, and did not immediately convert them to peaceful programs. Whatever the peaceful aims that were pursued by some or other state, this did not preclude a reverse process - re-engineering any very peaceful nuclear program back into a military one - thereby creating a full nuclear fuel program.
These concerns are heightened by the fact that development of a full nuclear program even by a state having advanced technologies involves what experts describe as "monstrous" expenses, while buying ready-made nuclear fuel is economically more profitable. Incidentally, Japan and Britain are not ashamed of using this second alternative, seeing no harm either to their nuclear sufficiency or their sovereignty.
Tehran keeps claiming that Iran's conversion to ready-made nuclear fuel will retard the natural progress of its nuclear technologies. Meanwhile, the Russian version is good in that it presupposes participation of Iranian specialists in uranium enrichment technology, especially since Russia has something they can learn from.
Russia's solution to the Iranian nuclear problem did not happen overnight. The idea of a joint venture crystallized in the course of Iranian-EU negotiations (with France, Germany and Britain). The idea fits best into the concept of IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) chairman ElBaradei, who is proposing a "multi-pronged" approach to the Iranian nuclear issue, therefore removing any political misgivings about the Iranian nuclear program.
Talk about the Russian solution became definitive last year, especially following the November Iran-EU round table in Paris. At the time Tehran signed an agreement temporarily suspending uranium enrichment, while IAEA inspectors sealed nuclear facilities in Isfahan and Natanze. Instead, the European Trio pledged to prepare a package of economic and political proposals that could compensate the Iranians for losses from the suspension of their nuclear industry operation and lead the negotiations to a compromise taking Iran's interests into account. The Russian option could be one, but as yet, there seems to be no alternative.
Tehran is not suggesting any alternative. And when all the things are said and done, it appears Iran seeks to get out of the nuclear non-proliferation straightjacket. Not formally and not according to the letter of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, but in actual fact. For example, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has signed a law automatically suspending Iran's observance of the additional protocol to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty in case the IAEA submits the conflict around Iranian nuclear program to the UN Security Council. This is a very clear signal. Tehran cannot but realize that it is the additional protocol that is the only guarantee of transparency of the signatories' nuclear technologies.
What is next? This coming January Iran is to have a very delicate discussion with the EU on its nuclear program. Tehran has a lot to prove in regaining the world community's trust. The Russian solution would be very handy to steer the dialog into constructive channels. It is in Tehran's best interest to confirm that the Russian proposal concerning joint uranium enrichment was phrased clearly and succinctly. Moscow is entitled to a more specific answer from Tehran on whether or not they are agreeable to that option. Practicalities of the concept may always be discussed at a meeting of interested parties.
1041
commercials
1044
Hm. Caffeine.
Russian Navy ship to take part in NATO operation in February
17:06
09/ 01/ 2006
BRUSSELS, January 9 (RIA Novosti) - A Russian Navy ship will arrive in Sicily in February to take part in a patrol mission in the Mediterranean, NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer said Monday.
Scheffer told journalists at a New Year reception in the NATO headquarters that the presence of the Russian ship in Sicily and its participation in the anti-terrorism Operation Active Endeavor would be an important contribution to NATO-Russia partnership.
Tastes of Paradise : A Social History of Spices, Stimulants, and Intoxicants
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/067974438X/ref=ase_brainconnection/102-0924847-9604104?s=books&v=glance&n=283155&tagActionCode=brainconnection
"[Coffee] spread through the body and achieved chemically and pharmacologically what rationalism and the Protestant ethic sought to fulfill spiritually and ideologically. With coffee the principle of rationality entered human physiology."
At least part of the reason for the proliferation of the use of caffeine—then and now—is the practically ubiquitous presence of plants containing it. Caffeine comes from an alkaloid family of generally poisonous nitrogen-containing compounds that includes the likes of strychnine, nicotine, morphine, mescaline, and emetine (the deadly ingredient in hemlock): a veritable who's who of nasty narcotics and poisons. Unlike the other compounds in this family, though, which are mostly associated with just one plant, caffeine occurs naturally in an extraordinary variety of plants—more than 100, in fact—including those as dissimilar as some lilacs and cacti.
In modern times, caffeine has handily maintained its prominence in daily life. After the consumption of water, beverages containing caffeine are the most popular on the planet—even more popular than alcohol. The United States, for example, averages 168 mg of caffeine per person every day, or about a cup and a half of coffee for each of its 275 million inhabitants each and every day. Which, as it turns out, is nothing compared to the 414 mg per day—or four cups a day per person—for the inhabitants of the Netherlands."
LET ME KNOW WHEN THE PROGRAM I AM WATCHING TEACHES ME SOMETHING !
1050
Dog Tales
Diamond Dog Food Recall.
http://www.diamondpetrecall.net/index.html
1056
Commercial
December Tuesday 7th 2004 (11h09) :
Texas to Florida: White House-linked clandestine operation paid for "vote switching" software
by Wayne Madsen
The manipulation of computer voting machines in the recent presidential election and the funding of programmers who were involved in the operation are tied to an intricate web of shady off-shore financial trusts and companies, shady espionage operatives, Republican Party politicians close to the Bush family, and National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) contract vehicles.
An exhaustive investigation has turned up a link between current Florida Republican Representative Tom Feeney, a customized Windows-based program to suppress Democratic votes on touch screen voting machines, a Florida computer services company with whom Feeney worked as a general counsel and registered lobbyist while he was Speaker of the Florida House of Representatives, and top level officials of the Bush administration.
1059
Frankenstein, the boy toy. The only competition Anderson knows. Hm.
1100
John Zarella and the 'hostage ten hour standoff.'
1102
Ah, hostage negotiator.
Yeah, everything is exclusive at CNN. Whether it is or isn't, it 's exclusive.
There is Frankenstein introducing Junior Achievement AGAIN. Oh, cute. Coffee and brains. No doubt Starbucks is on the horizon.
1001
The Florida Bank Robbery. I heard about it this afternoon on MSNBC while watching the Alito hearings. They had a very unique way with subtitles and news flashes to keep everyone up to date on what else was going on in the world. We heard about it 'blow by blow.'
1008
Mining in Kentucky was due to uncontrolled loose rock.
There has been seismic activity along the Mississippi at the borders of Kentucky, Tennessee and Missouri.
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/recenteqsUS/Maps/US10/32.42.-95.-85.html
1012
Commercials.
1014
The New York Times had an article today:
Endemic Problem of Safety in Coal Mining
The Sago Mine had 202 safety violations last year, a number that included 16 blatant violations that were considered immediate hazards to miners' safety. Like Sago, six other underground mines in West Virginia have 100 to 150 employees, according to federal records. Not one of the six had a similar blatant violation last year, according to federal mine records. Sago has had 14 major roof falls since June. Its injury rate last year was three times the national average.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/10/national/10safety.html?emc=eta1&pagewanted=print
Randy McClure has to wake up and get on with it. The sooner he is awake the better. I am sure sleeping is a better option for him but he is needed 'here' and not 'there.'
1020
The News Secretary
Sam Alito is a liar ! Under oath ! Everyone knows where they were when President Kennedy was assassinated. It's just one of those 'Real World Things.'
Alito says he doesn't remember controversial alumni group
KRON-4
CAPITOL HILL Samuel Alito has been distancing himself from an alumni group known for being against opening Princeton University to women and more minorities.
In a 1985 application for a job in the Reagan Justice Department, Alito listed his membership in the Concerned Alumni of Princeton.
But now, the Supreme Court nominee tells the Senate Judiciary Committee he has "no specific recollection of that organization," and he says he wasn't actively involved in it.
But Senator Patrick Leahy says he "can't believe" Alito would have "proudly" listed himself a member in the group without careful consideration. Alito replied that he'd been upset about the university's expulsion of the ROTC program, an expulsion that was opposed by the alumni group.
Leahy dismissed that, saying the group is known mostly for its opposition to women and minorities.
Republican Senator Orrin Hatch followed up with a softball question, asking Alito if he's against women and minorities attending college.
Alito replied, "Absolutely not."
1023
commercials
1026
Suicide attack at Interior Ministry kills 29
Deadly four-day period also claims lives of 28 American troops in Iraq
Associated Press
BAGHDAD, Iraq - Two suicide bombers wearing police uniforms and holding security passes tried to attack National Police Day celebrations Monday, with police shooting one to death and the other exploding his vest, killing 29 people, authorities said. The U.S. ambassador and Iraq’s interior and defense ministers were in attendance but far from the attacks.
1029
Alan Derschowitz. You'll excuse me, Alan, this isn't about EXCELLANCE. That is university stuff. This is about the way the AMERICAN PEOPLE live within the boundaries of the USA. You know Alan currently we have the US Constitution and Bill of Rights. We also have the Bush Constitution and Patriot Act. Now, evidently we all should be treated to the Dershowitz Constitution.
No, thank you !!!!!!!!!!!!!
1031
Arcata City Council calls for Bush impeachment
By Kimberly Wear / Eureka Times-Standard
ARCATA -- A split City Council passed a resolution demanding the impeachment or resignation of President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney, citing violations of international and constitutional law.
The White House responded that the president “remains focused on the business the American people elected him to conduct.”
The resolution lists a series of allegedly impeachable offenses, including “the crime of misleading the American people and Congress into waging an unnecessary and brutal war in Iraq,” “the criminal failure of the president to respond adequately to the Hurricane Katrina disaster,” “torturing human beings in violation of the Geneva Convention” and “ordering the secret surveillance of American citizens.”
Councilman Dave Meserve and Councilwoman Harmony Groves penned the resolution that passed 3-2 Wednesday, joined by Councilman Paul Pitino, with Mayor Michael Machi and Councilman Mark Wheetley dissenting.
”All elected officials swear to uphold and defend the Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic,” Meserve said. “This obligates us to act when the president violates the Constitution. We hope that other cities will join us in demanding the impeachment of Bush and Cheney.”
White House spokesman Ken Lisaius said Bush understands that there are people who “oppose the president's efforts to win the war on terror.”
”How those opposed to those efforts choose to express that opposition is up to each individual -- in this case a city council,” he said. “This president recognizes he has a responsibility and the constitutional authority to protect our country and that's what he will continue to do.”
The resolution also asks that Congressman Mike Thompson, D-St. Helena, join with others in Congress to introduce articles of impeachment against Bush. That would make him the third president to face the proceeding.
The first was President Andrew Johnson and the second -- more than 100 years later -- was President Bill Clinton. Both were acquitted. President Richard Nixon resigned rather than face impeachment.
Impeachment is a two-tier process beginning with a formal accusation, or the impeachment, being brought by the House of Representatives with a majority vote. Then, there is a trial by the Senate -- a conviction requires a two-thirds vote.
Copies of the Arcata resolution are being sent to Thompson, Sens. Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer and members of the House Judiciary Committee.
Feingold makes pitch for Sanders during Vermont visit
By Daniel Barlow / Rutland Herald
BRATTLEBORO — Congressman Bernard Sanders officially kicked off his campaign for U.S. Senate Saturday, flanked by a who's who of southern Vermont liberals and a popular and politically progressive senator from Wisconsin.
Sanders, who is seeking the seat now held by retiring Sen. Jim Jeffords, I-Vt., was joined at his first public campaign event by Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wis., and Vermont Senate President Pro Tem Peter Welch, a Democrat from Windsor County who is running for Sanders' U.S. House seat.
More than 400 people filled a theater at the town's high school Saturday afternoon to hear speeches by Sanders, Vermont's maverick U.S. House representative, and Feingold, who is a possible presidential candidate in 2008 and a staunch advocate for civil liberties and campaign finance reform.
"This little state will lead America in a profound new direction," Sanders said as he received a standing ovation from the crowd.
Sanders stressed similar ways of life between Vermonters and Wisconsin residents as he introduced Feingold, noting that both are rural states with struggling dairy farms. He also praised him for being the only senator to vote against the USA Patriot Act and the first to call for a timetable to remove troops from Iraq.
Feingold responded by joking that an appropriate newspaper headline for the event would be, "Cheesehead endorses Sanders." He quickly added that Vermont "is my kind of place."
Joining the three men were both of Windham County's senators and several of its state representatives. Sen. Rod Gander of Brattleboro welcomed Feingold to the "bluest town in the bluest county in the bluest state of them all," a reference to the popular color-mapping system that was used to track the outcome of the 2004 presidential election.
Sanders did not mention his two Republican opponents for Jeffords' seat, millionaire Richard Tarrant and Air Force fighter pilot Greg Parke, during the Brattleboro event. Fund-raisers for Sanders followed the campaign event at private residences in Brattleboro and Norwich.
Tarrant has vowed to only accept campaign donations from within Vermont, according to Tim Lennon, his campaign manager. Lennon criticized Sanders for accepting "95 percent of his campaign contributions from out-of-state special interests."
"I think Vermont voters will be asking a lot of questions about why people in California are giving money to the Sanders campaign," he said. Tarrant has held dozens of meetings throughout Vermont as he gears up for the race, he added, and campaigned in Brattleboro last month.
During an hour-long question-and-answer session, Sanders and Feingold were asked about the Iraq War, national energy policy and the effect of lobbying money on elected officials, just days after a disgraced Washington, D.C., lobbyist pleaded guilty in a money laundering scheme that may ensnare several more politicians.
Feingold said he supports a zero tolerance policy on gifts from lobbyists to elected officials and said he hopes to work with Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., on a bill to publicly finance federal campaigns.
Feingold, a member of the Senate's Judiciary Committee, raised the possibility that there are grounds to impeach President Bush for his secret domestic surveillance program, which was conducted without warrants or court oversight. He said he expects the surveillance program to get a full review under Committee Chairman Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa.
If it is found that the program is unlawful, Feingold said that "there should be full accountability. I will not take anything off the table."
While the audience was receptive to Sanders and Feingold, it was not so welcoming to Welch. In his brief opening statements, Welch stressed the need to unite Vermont liberals as several local anti-nuclear activists criticized him for his role in allowing Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant to store its nuclear waste on site.
Peter Cooper, a prominent progressive activist from Brattleboro, said Welch "sold us down the river" on the Vermont Yankee deal last year. And Elizabeth Wood of Dummerston asked the Windsor County senator to refuse campaign donations from Entergy Vermont Nuclear, the parent company of the Vernon plant, as her partner, Eesha Williams, held up a sign reading, "Welch Sold Out."
Welch agreed to refuse donations from the company. Earlier in the event, Welch vowed "to make it right" with Windham County activists and said, "I will meet with you."
Jackie Gould of Brattleboro, one of Sanders' volunteers for the event that day, said electing the congressman to the U.S. Senate would change the tone of the discussion because his voice would no longer be drowned out by 434 others.
"We have to elect Bernie for the U.S. Senate, not just for Vermont but for the whole country," she said.
1034
commercials
1036
Leahy Questioning
Washington Post
Democrat Sen. Patrick Leahy (Vt.) stepped it up a notch, pressing Judge Samuel A. Alito about his views on the current political controversy -- whether the president has the right to exercise executive authority in wiretapping during time of conflict. Alito tried to assure the committee that he felt the president was obligated “to comply with the statutes that are passed.” But the nominee, to Leahy’s frustration, left some room in his answers for judicially exploring whether there were overriding circumstances that the government could defend.
While Sen. Specter led the nominee through Alto’s prepared responses on the hot-button issues, Sen. Leahy pushed tried to push Alito out of his comfort zone by challenging the answers he had spent weeks rehearsing.
Leahy asked Alito to explain his dissent in a third circuit cases that defended the police’s decision to strip search a 10-year-old girl in drug case. Leahy criticized the nominee for siding with law enforcement in his ruling. Alito explained that his ruling was not intended to defend the strip search, but to defend the police’s view that that the warrant allowed it.
In closing, Leahy asked the unsmiling Alito how he could have joined Concerned Alumni of Princeton -- a conservative group know to be opposed to increasing the number of women attending the Ivy League school. Alito said he had no recollection of being a member of an organization that both Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) and former Sen. Bill Bradley condemned. Finding the answer incredulous, Leahy questioned how Alito could forget being a part of an organization he so prominently listed on a 1985 job applications.
Alito said that if he did belong to it, it was because Princeton had thrown the ROTC off campus and spoke ill of the military.
1037
Iran. Russia would like to assist and hence supervise Iran's uranium enrichment program. Iran is refusing. The circumstances are turning to the worst outcome for Iran. The reactor will have to be shut down if they refuse supervision. They are too dangerous. The Russian offer is far more viable than anything the EU is proposing. I think. Putin is willing to participate and be accountable. That is a major commitment to peace. Last I read about the Bird Flu, Russia was thinking about closing it's borders with Turkey. I think they should.
Moscow's proposal to Tehran still stands
MOSCOW. (RIA Novosti commentator Pyotr Goncharov.) Statements by Tehran officials that Russia has made no "concrete" proposals on uranium enrichment are little more than subterfuge, and a rather uncouth at that.
The other day the Russian Embassy in Tehran handed the Iranians an official note confirming that the earlier Russian proposal to Iran to set up a joint Russian-Iranian uranium enrichment venture in Russia remained in effect. It seems that here could be no more concrete wording.
The crux of the Russian proposal is that uranium should be enriched on Russian territory, instead of Iran's, as Tehran insists and the U.S. and EU categorically reject. And today this is perhaps the only possible compromise able to break the vicious circle of the Iranian-EU negotiating process (on the Iranian nuclear program).
Iran is insisting on the right to a full nuclear program on its soil. Moscow is offering a trade-in and aid. But Tehran, in the person of its official Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi, says they have "never received any concrete or detailed proposal from Russia." But then he adds: "We will make close study of any plan or proposal that will officially recognize our right to enrich uranium on Iranian territory."
Now everything falls in place. A "concrete" proposal for Iran seems to be one that recognizes its right to enrich uranium on its soil. In other words, Tehran is taking the negotiating process back to the scenario patently unacceptable to the EU.
There is one fairly important aspect of all "concerns" regarding a nuclear program started from scratch (not only by Iran but any other country). Many states initially developed full nuclear fuel programs exclusively to acquire nuclear weapons, and did not immediately convert them to peaceful programs. Whatever the peaceful aims that were pursued by some or other state, this did not preclude a reverse process - re-engineering any very peaceful nuclear program back into a military one - thereby creating a full nuclear fuel program.
These concerns are heightened by the fact that development of a full nuclear program even by a state having advanced technologies involves what experts describe as "monstrous" expenses, while buying ready-made nuclear fuel is economically more profitable. Incidentally, Japan and Britain are not ashamed of using this second alternative, seeing no harm either to their nuclear sufficiency or their sovereignty.
Tehran keeps claiming that Iran's conversion to ready-made nuclear fuel will retard the natural progress of its nuclear technologies. Meanwhile, the Russian version is good in that it presupposes participation of Iranian specialists in uranium enrichment technology, especially since Russia has something they can learn from.
Russia's solution to the Iranian nuclear problem did not happen overnight. The idea of a joint venture crystallized in the course of Iranian-EU negotiations (with France, Germany and Britain). The idea fits best into the concept of IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) chairman ElBaradei, who is proposing a "multi-pronged" approach to the Iranian nuclear issue, therefore removing any political misgivings about the Iranian nuclear program.
Talk about the Russian solution became definitive last year, especially following the November Iran-EU round table in Paris. At the time Tehran signed an agreement temporarily suspending uranium enrichment, while IAEA inspectors sealed nuclear facilities in Isfahan and Natanze. Instead, the European Trio pledged to prepare a package of economic and political proposals that could compensate the Iranians for losses from the suspension of their nuclear industry operation and lead the negotiations to a compromise taking Iran's interests into account. The Russian option could be one, but as yet, there seems to be no alternative.
Tehran is not suggesting any alternative. And when all the things are said and done, it appears Iran seeks to get out of the nuclear non-proliferation straightjacket. Not formally and not according to the letter of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, but in actual fact. For example, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has signed a law automatically suspending Iran's observance of the additional protocol to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty in case the IAEA submits the conflict around Iranian nuclear program to the UN Security Council. This is a very clear signal. Tehran cannot but realize that it is the additional protocol that is the only guarantee of transparency of the signatories' nuclear technologies.
What is next? This coming January Iran is to have a very delicate discussion with the EU on its nuclear program. Tehran has a lot to prove in regaining the world community's trust. The Russian solution would be very handy to steer the dialog into constructive channels. It is in Tehran's best interest to confirm that the Russian proposal concerning joint uranium enrichment was phrased clearly and succinctly. Moscow is entitled to a more specific answer from Tehran on whether or not they are agreeable to that option. Practicalities of the concept may always be discussed at a meeting of interested parties.
1041
commercials
1044
Hm. Caffeine.
Russian Navy ship to take part in NATO operation in February
17:06
09/ 01/ 2006
BRUSSELS, January 9 (RIA Novosti) - A Russian Navy ship will arrive in Sicily in February to take part in a patrol mission in the Mediterranean, NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer said Monday.
Scheffer told journalists at a New Year reception in the NATO headquarters that the presence of the Russian ship in Sicily and its participation in the anti-terrorism Operation Active Endeavor would be an important contribution to NATO-Russia partnership.
Tastes of Paradise : A Social History of Spices, Stimulants, and Intoxicants
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/067974438X/ref=ase_brainconnection/102-0924847-9604104?s=books&v=glance&n=283155&tagActionCode=brainconnection
"[Coffee] spread through the body and achieved chemically and pharmacologically what rationalism and the Protestant ethic sought to fulfill spiritually and ideologically. With coffee the principle of rationality entered human physiology."
At least part of the reason for the proliferation of the use of caffeine—then and now—is the practically ubiquitous presence of plants containing it. Caffeine comes from an alkaloid family of generally poisonous nitrogen-containing compounds that includes the likes of strychnine, nicotine, morphine, mescaline, and emetine (the deadly ingredient in hemlock): a veritable who's who of nasty narcotics and poisons. Unlike the other compounds in this family, though, which are mostly associated with just one plant, caffeine occurs naturally in an extraordinary variety of plants—more than 100, in fact—including those as dissimilar as some lilacs and cacti.
In modern times, caffeine has handily maintained its prominence in daily life. After the consumption of water, beverages containing caffeine are the most popular on the planet—even more popular than alcohol. The United States, for example, averages 168 mg of caffeine per person every day, or about a cup and a half of coffee for each of its 275 million inhabitants each and every day. Which, as it turns out, is nothing compared to the 414 mg per day—or four cups a day per person—for the inhabitants of the Netherlands."
LET ME KNOW WHEN THE PROGRAM I AM WATCHING TEACHES ME SOMETHING !
1050
Dog Tales
Diamond Dog Food Recall.
http://www.diamondpetrecall.net/index.html
1056
Commercial
December Tuesday 7th 2004 (11h09) :
Texas to Florida: White House-linked clandestine operation paid for "vote switching" software
by Wayne Madsen
The manipulation of computer voting machines in the recent presidential election and the funding of programmers who were involved in the operation are tied to an intricate web of shady off-shore financial trusts and companies, shady espionage operatives, Republican Party politicians close to the Bush family, and National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) contract vehicles.
An exhaustive investigation has turned up a link between current Florida Republican Representative Tom Feeney, a customized Windows-based program to suppress Democratic votes on touch screen voting machines, a Florida computer services company with whom Feeney worked as a general counsel and registered lobbyist while he was Speaker of the Florida House of Representatives, and top level officials of the Bush administration.
1059
Frankenstein, the boy toy. The only competition Anderson knows. Hm.
1100
John Zarella and the 'hostage ten hour standoff.'
1102
Ah, hostage negotiator.
Thought I'd add a little color to the program.
Former Seahawk Brown dies of apparent heart attack
Dave Brown, an original Seahawks player and one of seven men enshrined in the club's hall of fame, died Tuesday of an apparent heart attack while playing basketball with one of his sons in a pickup game at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas.Brown, who would have turned 53 Monday, recently had completed his fifth year as the secondary coach on the Texas Tech football staff.
1106
A review of the Kentucky mine accident.
1108
commercials
Fitzgerald Maintains Focus on Rove
Special Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald is said to have spent the past month preparing evidence he will present to a grand jury alleging that White House Deputy Chief of Staff Karl Rove knowingly made false statements to FBI and Justice Department investigators and lied under oath while he was being questioned about his role in the leak of covert CIA agent Valerie Plame's identity more than two years ago, according to sources knowledgeable about the probe.
1110
Listen to Anderson's tone of voice. It sounds like he just woke up from a bad dream. And he has an audience, no less. You know. These folks think the nation should be on "Red Alert" 24-7; Anderson is a built in terror machine. Excitable, huh,, babe !
"The Osama bin Laden I Knew" - Funny, I don't think 'bins' life is that important unless it's OVER !
Few Americans Expect bin Laden’s Capture in 2006
Angus Reid Global Scan) – Many adults in the U.S. believe the leader of al-Qaeda will not be successfully detained this year, according to a poll by Gallup released by CNN and USA Today. 68 per cent of respondents believe it is unlikely that Osama bin Laden will be captured or killed.
1115
The Newsy Secretary
1116
The cough debate. The best cough suppressant is codeine in Guaifenesin. The guaifenesin is a 'vehicle' for the codiene as well as a throat coating.
1123
Back to Alito.
I doubt if there is going to be much more interesting tonight.
1129
York Plant Explosion May Be Hazardous
AP) GLEN ROCK, Pa. People who live within three miles of a factory in Glen Rock, in southern York County, Pennsylvania, are being told to stay inside and keep doors and windows shut. It's because of multiple explosions and a large fire at the Adhesives Research Incorporated factory. York County emergency officials say there's the potential for harmful chemicals to be released into the air. Tonight's blast at the Adhesives Research Incorporated factory comes after an explosion blew out a wall of the factory this morning. Glen Rock is about six miles north of the Maryland-Pennsylvania border and a few miles west of Interstate 83. Police have shut down a portion of I-83 in the area.
Explosion at Glen Rock facility
Daily Record/Sunday News
Jan 10, 2006 — A flammable material storage room exploded late this morning at Adhesives Research near Glen Rock.
It ripped open the west wall of the building, but everyone made it out uninjured, said Bernadette Lauer of York County's Department of Emergency Services.
A sprinkler system doused most of the flames. The facility makes everything from adhesives to breath strips, Lauer said.
After the explosion, a large plume of smoke was seen from the building, and a foamy liquid ran into a nearby drainage ditch. Officials were working to determine what materials were involved in the explosion and whether they posed a health risk to the public.
I don't want to do this anymore tonight.
Good night, Aaron.
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