April 15, 2012

BREAKING: ROMNEYCARE DECLARED MASSIVE FAILURE

Sat Apr 14, 2012 at 07:01 PM PDT
BREAKING: ROMNEYCARE DECLARED MASSIVE FAILURE
by jpmassar

In a crippling blow to the concept of health care mandates, socialism, and the peoples' right to pay ever-more-exorbitant premiums, officials in Massachusetts announced today that

Reduced premiums? Why thats, that's... un-American!

There is no way that Governor dog-on-car and Obamacare-is-socialism willingly signed this horrible legislation; legislation that is bringing Massachusetts residents agony little short of a descent into hell itself. Democrats must have captured him and handed him over to space aliens to be tortured. Yeah, that's it. Space alien torture is responsible for Romneycare.

The story continues, but it only gets worse...

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/04/14/1083481/-BREAKING-ROMNEYCARE-DECLARED-MASSIVE-FAILURE-

April 14, 2012

*****TORNADO LIVEBLOG****

The tornadoes have started.

Here is the latest (although really nothing new or specific) from the Storm Prediction Center http://www.spc.noaa.gov/products/outlook/pwo.html :

Also weatherdude at DailyKos is keeping a liveblog going that is quite informative:

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/04/14/1083401/-Major-Tornado-Outbreak-Underway-Across-Midwest

If you are in the area, please let us know what is happening and STAY SAFE!!!

April 14, 2012

20 quakes in Fukushima beginning with M5.9 24 hours ago - Consecutive M4.4s in last 30 minutes

20 quakes in Fukushima beginning with M5.9 24 hours ago - Consecutive M4.4s in last 30 minutes

The last number in each column is the Japan Seismic Intensity Number based on a scale of 1-7, 1 being the lowest and 7 the highest. I tried to seperate the numbers some, but the software isn't letting me. It is easier to read the chart at the link. For those who are unaware, the nuclear plant at Fukushima is still spewing radiation, and is extremely vulnerable. A quake large enough could topple the already leaning spent fuel pool 4 building. Experts predict a quake on the JSI scale of 4 or higher could cause the entire building to collapse.



http://www.jma.go.jp/en/quake/quake_local_index.html

http://enenews.com/now-20-quakes-centered-in-fukushima-beginning-with-m5-9-just-over-24-hours-ago-consecutive-m4-4s-in-last-30-minutes

April 14, 2012

Life Threatening Tornado Outbreak For OKC, Wichita, Omaha Saturday - Please k/r for wide visibility

TO THE MODS: I have posted weatherdude's post in it's entirety because I am certain he wants this information disseminated far and wide. Thank you

Life Threatening Tornado Outbreak For OKC, Wichita, Omaha Saturday (New Diary Posted)
by weatherdude

A new diary was posted at 1130 PM CDT talking about the Friday evening model runs and what they mean for the Saturday tornado outbreak.



A major severe weather outbreak is expected across the Central Plains on Saturday afternoon and evening, with an absolutely unprecedented severe weather forecast coming from the Storm Prediction Center. A full two days before the outbreak, the SPC has issued a high risk for severe weather across parts of Oklahoma and Kansas, including the Oklahoma City metro area, as well as Wichita KS.



With extremely strong shear and relatively high amounts of CAPE forecast to be in place on Saturday, any storms that fire from Texas to Iowa are expected to turn quickly severe, with the worst weather occurring over central parts of Oklahoma and Kansas. Helicity -- a measure of spin that can occur inside of a thunderstorm -- is off the charts in this area. As of the model runs at 8PM last night, the helicity in Wichita KS was near 750. A value of 450 is sufficient for violent EF-4 to EF-5 tornadoes to develop.

The SPC is so confident that very dangerous severe weather will occur, that not only have they issued a high risk an unprecedented 2 days in advance, but they've also issued a 60% risk for severe weather, another absolutely unprecedented forecast. Not even during the strongest ongoing severe weather have I seen them issue a 60% risk zone.



I typed this diary at 125AM Central Time, and scheduled it to post at 900AM. I'm likely still sleeping by the time this diary posted, but I wanted to get the word out now that a very dangerous, life-threatening situation is expected to develop on Saturday. If you or anyone you know lives in the area under any threat for severe weather (within the yellow, red, or purple shading), let them know to keep a hawk-like watch on the weather today and tomorrow.

I'll have another diary later this evening on the outbreak, and definitely throughout the day tomorrow.

Here's a link to the Storm Prediction Center - http://www.spc.noaa.gov/.

NWS Oklahoma City - http://www.srh.noaa.gov/oun/
NWS Wichita KS - http://www.crh.noaa.gov/ict/
NWS Dallas/Fort Worth - http://www.srh.noaa.gov/fwd/
NWS Topeka KS - http://www.crh.noaa.gov/top/
NWS Omaha, NE - http://www.crh.noaa.gov/oax/

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/04/13/1083015/-Unprecedented-Severe-Weather-Forecast-Life-Threatening-Situation-For-OKC-Wichita-Saturday

April 13, 2012

A Tea Partier Just Called Me "Communist." Watch My SLAM DUNK Response

Thu Apr 12, 2012 at 12:05 PM PDT
A Tea Partier Just Called Me "Communist." Watch My SLAM DUNK Response
by Conceptual Guerilla

So I'm working this morning, like I do everyday, trying to come up with ways to promote my film, when I get this email from a guy who used to call my radio show over in Jackonville.

His name is Rod, and here's what he sent.

I wasn't getting a whole lot done, so I figured "what the hell." I wrote him a response.

First of all, do I really want to empower him by getting all indignant and angry . . . validating how smart he thinks he is?

I'd much rather counter-attack, and put this joker on the defensive . . .

. . Like this.



No Republican Patriot ever left office with unemployment under 5 % . . . including Reagan. No New Deal Communist ever left office with higher unemployment than they inherited . . . including Jimmy Carter who left the same unemployment he inherited from Ford.

3 out of 4 New Deal Communists left office with unemployment well under five percent.

But wait . . . there's more...

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/04/12/1082820/-A-Tea-Partier-Just-Called-Me-Communist-Watch-My-SLAM-DUNK-Response

April 13, 2012

Moran: Gov. Chris Christie's condescending speech out of touch with Americans' reality

Moran: Gov. Chris Christie's condescending speech out of touch with Americans' reality
Published: Thursday, April 12, 2012, 8:00 AM
Tom Moran/ The Star-Ledger

...Kathleen DiChiara has been running the Community FoodBank of New Jersey for 37 years. What she sees is not a country of louts, but one with lots of decent people who are down on their luck.

"I was at our pantry in Atlantic City and I saw this well-dressed man on line," she said. "He sold furniture by commission, and when the casinos started laying off people, he lost a lot. He said he was losing his house. He had three kids. This was a man who had worked all his life. He said, ‘I just can’t go home tonight without food for the kids. If you want me to kneel down, I will. I’ll do anything to not have to go home and let my kids be hungry again.’

"He had tears in his eyes. These people don’t feel entitled. They feel embarrassed to be asking for help."

It is bad enough that economic royalists such as Christie are pushing for tax cuts that are heavily tilted toward the rich. Do we really have to hear his morally superior lecture on top of that?

The answer is yes. Because to justify shrinking government as much as Republicans want and to justify big tax cuts at the same time, you have to build a story that turns government into the enemy. So programs that provide help are turned into demons that corrupt our collective spirit.

Without a doubt, there are louts out there. That probably helps explain some of the sharp increases in disability benefits in the Social Security program. But Republicans use this narrative to attack college scholarships, job-training programs, even visits to the doctor.

Christie, despite his pledge on taxes, has actually increased taxes on the working poor by shrinking the earned income tax credit. Does a parent unlucky enough to be raising a family on minimum wage really need the governor’s condescending kick in the pants?

The response to this nonsense was sustained applause from the audience stacked overwhelmingly with white men in expensive suits. Karl Rove was there, as was Henry Kissinger and the former President George W. Bush, the grandmaster of tax cuts that don’t work...

http://blog.nj.com/njv_tom_moran/2012/04/gov_chris_christies_condescend.html#incart_hbx

April 1, 2012

M5.9 quake shakes Fukushima Pref., vicinity in eastern Japan

Source: Kyodo News

An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 5.9 shook Fukushima Prefecture and its vicinity in eastern Japan on Sunday night, the Japan Meteorological Agency said. No tsunami warning was issued.

The 11:04 p.m. temblor measured lower 5 on the Japanese intensity scale of 7 in the towns of Naraha and Tomioka in the prefecture, according to the agency.

It registered 4 on the Japanese scale in some areas of Fukushima, Miyagi, Ibaraki and Tochigi prefectures.

Read more: http://english.kyodonews.jp/news/2012/04/150176.html